Angels Eyes
by Axelkin
Summary: Garrus and Shepard learn to express their feelings toward each other as they try and save the galaxy from the Reapers. R&R's welcome. Alternate storyline to Just Right and Once Again. Ch 1-5 with new revisions. On hiatus.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is an alternate story based on my previous works Just Right and Once Again. While some of the events may be similar in some places, it is a whole other story. This Shepard is more of "my" Shepard while the other is "everyone's" Shepard. Also, I would like to make Garrus a bit more robust than the other. I do hope you enjoy it and please R&R's are very much appreciated. This is also done without a beta, so please excuse any grammar issues. I do plan to go back every now and then and give the chapters a look over to fix any errors I find.

The title comes from a song titled "Angels Eyes" By Mario Lopez: .com/watch?v=VeGsayRy6eY

About my Shepard:

Full name: Lexa Luo Shepard

Spacer/Sole survivor Class: infiltrator, she is also a hand-to-hand specialist (jujitsu)

Hair: dark reddish brown that is sometimes mistaken to be black (normally in a ponytail) at longest length it is to the middle of her back.

Eyes: Emerald green

Other info: Her favorite color is red. Favorite type of music is dance. Loves: reading and drawing. Her father was a special ops trainer and her grandmother was Asian and taught her ancient calligraphy art. Although she grew up in a military home setting she still likes to be fashionable when she can. Her very close friends and family call her "Lexi". The one food weakness she has is cheesecake. (Check back for any other things that may be added in the future as I too discover them)

Update 3/30/12: ch 1- Fixed a few grammar errors I found and some minor wording issues that didn't sit right with me. Also broke up the paragraphs to flow better while reading.

Update 4/11/12: Condensed old ch 1 and 2 together and added some more filler and grammar issues. Also completely new ch 2.

Update 4/20/12: Ch 1-5 revamped and fixed up.

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><p><strong>Angels Eyes<strong>

**Chapter 1**

Omega reeked with a foul stench that seemed to never go away. The streets smelled and the people smelled worse. Garrus Vakarian wriggled his nose at the constant stink. No matter how much one could bathe it was like the smell followed him everywhere. He was tired of it; hell he was tired of everything. Tired of running, tired of shooting. Nothing seemed right anymore. Two years of the same stench that reminded him of failure. There was nothing worse than that. He had failed them all. His friends, his family, his gang, and most of all, he failed Shepard. He was not there for here when he should have to pull her back from the brink of death.

Nothing mattered anymore. Death was the only redemption he had now. He looked back over the window and lined up another shot. The bullet flew from his weapon and he never felt it leave the barrel. It was as empty as his soul. He let another bullet fly. Scanning the field for another target a unique shade of red armor filled his scope. A color her knew no one else ever wore. It was definitely not any type of merc or hired gun he knew. The scope zoomed out and he nearly lost hold of his gun and a bullet whizzed past his helmet.

_Shit._ He looked again before he ducked back into cover. There was no mistake. Garrus felt his heart pump loudly in his suit and he fought to keep control. He loaded a concussive round and aimed at the target again. He had to be absolutely sure. The trigger felt heavy against his finger and he pulled with all his might. His target pulled to the right at the last second causing his shot to only graze the shields; the face in his scope glared up at him almost accusingly. There was no mistake, he ducked back down as his blood pressure went through the roof.

Those clear green, accusing eyes bore into his vision. _Why weren't you there?_ Did she know it was him? He never knew anyone else pull like that expect one person: Commander Lexa Shepard. After all those years he still did not understand why a soldier who always fired with her right hand pulled the opposite direction. It was her weaker side and he had even called her on it a few times. He closed his eyes and tried to remember her exactly like she had been two years ago.

_Shepard leaned up against the Mako and crossed her arms as she looked down at him while he fixed a broken component. Her dark brown hair looked strangely black in the low lighting of the cargo hold and was teased up into a strong ponytail. The off duty Alliance uniform looked strange on her and she tugged at it as if it bothered her._

_"Any more calibrations on this thing and you are going to turn it into a Frankenstein."_

_Garrus did not know what a "Frankenstein" was nor did he really care. "If you would quit bringing it back half broken I wouldn't have to fix it all the time."_

_She gave him that half smile she did when she liked teasing someone. "Awe, then you wouldn't have anything to do once we were back on the Normandy."_

_He laughed. "Just let me drive it next time."_

_She pulled on the ends of her hair and a sparkle twinkled in the corner as she narrowed her eyes at him. "You're on. But if you break it, you have to clean the entire cargo bay with a toothbrush."_

_"Hah, and if I don't?"_

_"I will put the whole Mako back together for you."_

_Garrus laughed. "Only if I supervise. Don't need you breaking it without even driving it."_

_She smiled fully at him in the low light. "You got it."_

_"Then it's agreed."_

The same dark brown hair that shown specks of red, rosy lips, and bright green eyes that were an envy of all races stared back at him through his scope. Garrus breathed in deeply and shot at the merc standing behind her. Shepard picked up her weapon and fired into the backs of the folder troops that had managed to get past his defense as he was distracted by her sudden appearance. _Why weren't you there?_

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><p>He was so excited to see her it was hard to concentrate. The sudden need to be gone from Omega and the merc hunting overwhelmed him. Shepard's surprise reaction told him she did not know it was him at first, but she was genuinely happy to see him. Garrus was so distracted he did not hear the gunship fly in quickly.<p>

"Look out!"

He turned a little too late and he saw the bullets fly towards him. Shearing pain erupted down his face and neck. He tried to scream. He tried to move out of the line of fire. The world turned sideways and the distant sounds of shouting and gunfire floated above him. Garrus wanted to speak. He wanted to tell her something but could not remember what it was.

Then there was silence. Dead silence and he opened his eyes to be sure. He gasped as his lungs filled with dark blue liquid.

"Garrus!" Her voice was too distant. "Hang in there!"

Short staggered breaths escaped his mouth. It was hard to breathe. _You are here._ The thought soothed him and he let go slightly and curled his figures together wishing it were her hand._ I knew you weren't dead._ He never let his eyes off her until the black rim of unconsciousness took over.

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><p>Lexa Shepard knew the dangers of being a soldier. She knew that running around trying to save the galaxy could someday come back and bite her. Of course it had to be with her being spaced of all things. She snorted at that thought as she double-checked to make sure there was nobody in the mess hall and that the dear doctor was indeed asleep. Good thing about knowing the habits of your fellow crewmates was that they generally did not waver from them too often. After she was sure there was nobody in sight, she made a mad dash for the kitchen and was on her knees and opening the bottom cabinet without a second to spare. Things did not seem to matter as much now that she was back on her feet. Even though she did not care for Cerberus she had to hand it to them for being able to bring her back making her feelings quite irrelevant.<p>

What did matter was that Garrus was finally on board the Normandy and having a familiar face around was very comforting. It helped tremendously that she had someone there whom she trusted more than most people she had known all her life. Not only that but the Normandy just did not seem the same without him. Seeing him on Omega for the first time since she had ordered everyone into escape pods created an overwhelming urge to drop her well placed Commander persona and hugged him right then and there. However, that might have gotten some uncomfortable gazes from more than one person.

She wiggled her body slowly as she crawled on all fours and peered inside the cupboard. _Besides, it was not like he was going anywhere else._ It was heart wrenching to see the gunship tear into Garrus and her heart felt like it was going to bleed out for him in those fleeting moments of uncertainty. The following hours were excruciating while Dr. Chakwas patched him up the best she could. Scars did not bother Shepard any; she herself had earned a few before she had been reconstructed.

Unconsciously she scratched the length of her left arm where she once sported a long, but pale scar that she had received while on Akuze. Now all that was there was smooth skin with a few breaks where her cells had not completely healed up from her reconstruction, but they would eventually disappear. Just like her old scar. Up until the reconstruction had eliminated the scar she had tried not to draw attention to it. Scars told stories. They held the memories that made you who were today. Sometimes you wanted to forget about them but to deny what they meant was something nobody should do. Scars will heal and so will the people who carry them.

Shepard sighed; She knew that Garrus would eventually heal and even if his face would never look the same, people like her will still care about him just the same. She was also quite sure that the Illusive Man knew all along who Archangel was but did not want to tell her in fear of letting her know that he knew things he probably should not. Shepard did wonder if she had known that Archangel was Garrus if she would have gotten to him any faster and be able to prevent the horrible incident. Regardless of how much she distrusted the Illusive Man already she had come to the realization that she needed his resources. Those eyes gave her the shivers though. There was something just not right about them.

Shaking her head, Shepard set her focus back to her previous task: attempting to hide a box of chocolates from the chef. There was a little secret she wanted to keep hidden until the right time. Until then, the very back of the bottom shelf in the kitchen seemed like the best spot. With a new sneaky AI that could pop up practically anywhere this seemed like the most logical choice. If EDI or anyone else saw her digging around here they would just think she was looking for a little snack. _Better than someone seeing me carrying it around or from my room to somewhere else._ She huffed as she tried to squeeze further inside the bottom cupboard to make sure it would not be discovered.

"Drop something?" A deep voice vibrated over her and into the cupboard.

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><p>Garrus was not completely sure whether to count himself lucky or not. The pain meds where finally wearing off enough to where he was able to move his mandible slightly without it feeling like it was going to tear off his face without a moments notice. <em>Spirits I hate bandages.<em> Garrus scratched at the offensive plate holding together his face. _At least it is better than having a gunship rip it off for you._ A small voice in the back of his mind whispered. He snorted to himself, _Yeah, a little late for that._

At least now he did not have to worry about running from place to place hoping to remain undetected as he tried to bring down some of the scummiest merc groups in the galaxy. Now he could do something that really mattered. Something that was truly meaningful. _And you get to gala band across the galaxy with your best friend again. Heh, just like old times indeed._ Garrus scratched at the bandage again. The damn thing was making it very hard to concentrate on the screen that held a very complicated calibration for a new spec of firing algorithms. Finally he gave up on it and saved the program. _Not like it won't be there in the morning._

The door to the main battery hissed open for him as he stretched his neck. There was a bit of a perk to having a ship that actually had crew quarters now. No more sleeping in military style sleep pods. There was something to be said about humans and their quest to have luxury even on a ship outfitted for battle. Halfway down the hall he heard a small clanking noise from the kitchen. _It's probably just Gardner cleaning up the dishes for the night._ He blinked as he noticed that the mess hall lights where a bit dimmer than normal dining hours and the lack of any other noise. _Huh, it must be even later than I thought. Someone getting a late night snack then._ Garrus peered over the counter to see a lithe body in very light clothing half way inside the bottom cabinet.

"Drop something?" he asked a bit concerned.

The girl yelped and jumped while still inside the cabinet. Garrus winced to himself sympathetically. He watched as she crawled out of cupboard rubbing her dark hair.

"Shepard! Oh sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He rounded the corner in concern for his commander.

"Oh it's ok, Garrus." She was making hissing noises and rubbing her head vigorously. "It is kind of my fault."

Garrus knelt down to her level slowly. "What are you doing down there anyways. And what are you wearing?"

He had ever seen his commander this way before. Her long dark reddish brown hair looked almost black in the dimmed lighting was out of its normal high ponytail and was flowing gracefully over her shoulders. She was in a white shirt that looked a little too big for her and was possibly see-through if not for the faded green robe she wore over it. She also had on the shortest pair of pants he had ever seen a human wear. He would have guessed she was not wearing any if he could not clearly see the light blue hem just bellow her shirt.

It was not the most flattering thing he had seen her wear but it was probably the most revealing. Shepard tugged on her robe to cover her shirt more but not before he got a small glimpse of what looked like red cloth beneath it. His mandibles flared awkwardly. _Y-yeah, defiantly see-through…_ He tried to avert his eyes respectfully as he saw herface curiously turned a bit pink as she looked off to the side as she brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes.

"Uh, just… looking for something to eat."

The tone in her voice made Garrus focused on her again and cocked his head to the side. He if did not know the commander as well as he did he would have taken her bluff. The little voice in the back of his mind snickered as he thought of how he was going to get her to fess up this time.

"Oh? Did you find anything worth sharing?" He asked teasingly knowing very well she knew anything she did happen to find would not be suitable for him.

"Well… I…" The pink on Shepard's face grew darker as she reached up with one hand and scratched next to her nose to try and keep his attention from trying to obviously hide a small box behind her back. _Oh this has got to be something good._ Garrus did not get to tease Shepard often and was taking full advantage of it, even if she was acting a little unlike herself.

He let out a deeply exaggerated sigh. "Oh well, I guess I can wait until Chef is up in the morning before I scrounge for food." Rolling on his feet he started to position his weight to be able to stand up without staggering forward onto his face. "Not like it will hurt to skip one meal."

Before he could move another inch Shepard was shoving the box from behind her back into his hands. "Here." She was trying to avoid looking into his eyes at this point. "I was going to save it for later. I know how hard it is to find decent dextro food while being out in space all the time." Garrus glanced down and took the box from Shepard's long graceful fingers. She stood up and dusted the front of her clothing off before she would look at him again. "I guess the cat is out of the bag now anyways. Goodnight Garrus. You should get some sleep too. It is going to be a busy day tomorrow."

He watched as Shepard slid past him and all but ran toward the elevator. She was gone a good five minutes before he realized he had not even really looked at what she handed him. _Damn, how did she know I had a thing for sweets?_ Studying the box of dextro-chocolates revealed it was stamped with a "Best of Cipritine" seal causing Garrus to almost loose grip of the box. _Spirits! This must have set her back quite a bit._ Hugging the box he looked around for a good spot to place it. He glanced back down at the cupboard Shepard had been attempting to conceal it in. It would have been perfect if he were not too big and bulky to fit through the little doors. _Guess you messed up that plan huh?_ The voice snickered at him. He sighed and walked back toward the main battery. It was as safe as any place. _And nobody will ask what I am doing with a box of chocolate._ It was a little late but… _just one piece won't hurt. Besides, it is going to hours before Gardner is up and cooking._

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><p>To be honest, Shepard was actually glad to tell Garrus to stay behind while they went through a quarantined area not suitable for Turians. Not only did it give Garrus some more time to heal and get off the pain meds, but also it gave her some time to think while she was not near him. Miranda and Jacob were not really that chatty and she did not know them yet. At the moment she was not sure she wanted to either. So the silence was welcoming.<p>

Garrus was pretty much like a best friend to her. He was always there, always listened to her, and never forgot to let her take the first shot. Not that the last one was important to her or anything, but the sentiment was there enough to make him a trustworthy person to her. She grinned at herself as she remembered how he even made sure to stand in a certain spot next to the Mako so she could not see where Ashley used to stand to do her work on the Normandy after she had died. "_So Shepard, we sure did show those Krogan mutants how it is really done didn't we." "Yes we did Garrus. Yes we did." Wrex had laughed sarcastically in the background and pounded his fist at them. "Only when I rip Saren's head from his neck will we truly show them how it's done."_

Shepard inwardly sighed to herself. She could not help but think those things only seemed like a few weeks ago to her where the rest of the galaxy saw two years. _Does dieing really change you?_ She started to wonder. _Or did _they_ change me…_ There was a nagging question on what exactly Cerberus did to her. Sure she felt like Shepard. But at the same time, the implants enhanced… well pretty much everything. Her tech was more efficient, her endurance was higher, and her muscles more flexible. The sudden urge to be out of her god-forsaken armor and stretch was as bad as an itch on the bottom of your foot while inside an armored boot.

Speaking of which, it had been bugging her all night and day about how she had acted the previous night when Garrus had caught her with the box of chocolate she was saving to give him later. She was going to use it as a "welcome back" gift and spend some time catching up on the "old times" they had. But he had snuck up on her and went and spoiled the whole surprise. _I knew I should have checked to see if he was still in the battery first._ And then there was the embarrassment of getting caught. She had never been so nervous around anyone before. Particularly him. The fact that she was in her pajamas did not help either. Garrus had just sat there looking at her like she had grown an extra limb or something. It did not help that the last time she was wearing anything as revealing was when Kaidan came to her room that one time night before Ilos.

Shepard's face grew hot at the thought of Garrus seeing her that way. _At least the robe covered up most of me… well sorta. _Maybe it was because of him catching her in such a state that made it hard to talk to him. _Y-yeah. That is probably why._ She shook her head and tried to bring herself back to the mission at hand. She had definitely mussed well over what her daily limit should be on one thing. They needed this Salarian doctor's help against the Collectors and it was not the time to be mussing over anything. Shepard's pace quickened as the clinic doors came into view. She was done with the place. It just felt all wrong and diseased. _Well duh. Of course it is!_ She could not wait to get back onto the Normandy and clean herself off of the filth that she left that started to cling to her skin. _The sooner we get Dr. Mordin out of here the better I will feel._

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><p>Garrus did not particularly liked waiting. Especially when he had to sit out a mission. It was not like there was really anyone to talk too and he was the only non-human onboard. <em>I know Shepard; even though Cerberus is notorious for being anti-alien she will bring as many diversities as she can into this. <em> However, missions kept his mind off of things. Ugly things, like watching Shepard die. He took a sip of his drink as he clicked the data pad out of pure habit. He was not even really reading… well, whatever it was he was reading. To be honest, he had not really thought about Shepard's death at all. Even when he decided to follow in her footsteps and try and make the galaxy a better place, or did he? Did he do it just to keep from thinking about her? And why was he even thinking about it that way to begin with?

Garrus took another automated sip and clicked the pad again. What was he trying to cover up by not even coming to terms with her death? _Perhaps you knew all along that nothing could stop a woman of that magnitude from running the galaxy amuck. _He snorted to himself at that thought. _Or maybe you were just in denial that you did not want her to be dead so you covered it up with something else._ He focused hard on one spot on his data pad, as he tried not to growl at the voice in his head. A little cough caught his attention and he looked through the clear blue of his pad to see a young girl smiling at him. What was her name? _Oh yeah, Kelly Chambers, the new Yeoman and ship counselor._ Garrus attempted to ignore her presence and tapped the pad again.

After a few minutes of silence he finally decided that she was not going to leave him alone so he put on his "game face", as humans put it, and asked politely. "Yes? Is there something you need?"

Kelly smiled again and inched closer over the table. "You have known the commander a long time right?" _Yeah, and when you are trying to find a way to stop thinking about her dieing you kind of don't want be asked questions. _

"Yes, we took down Sovereign together." Garrus tapped the pad again without really seeing it.

"That was over two years ago."

"And?"

Kelly paused for a moment. "Well, technically you weren't in contact for two years…" It was like she was trying to lead up to something that did not quite make sense.

"I can't really blame that one on her now can I?" He tapped the pad a little more viciously than he intended to and it gave out a long "error" beep at him.

"What are you reading?" The questions did not seem to stop or have any point.

"Nothing you would be interested in."

"You have been reading the same page for the past ten minutes. It must be interesting." Another long beep strained into the air. It was becoming increasingly difficult not to smash it on the table and tell her off.

"Some calibration algorithms take a very long time to read correctly." It was the only thing he could really think of at the moment that would sound probable.

"Ah yes." There was a much longer pause than before. "You are cute." It took a lot of restraint for Garrus to just simply look over the pad at her and study her as the eye piece to his visor twisted around and into focus. "Err… what I mean is you two… you… Shepard. Cute…" He continued to just stare at her across the table, as the next pause seemed to draw through time and space itself. Finally she sighed deeply and stood up. "I guess what I wanted to say was some calibrations are even difficult for you to see as well. Perhaps staring at them isn't always the answer. Sometimes just doing something about it is better than waiting for it to fix itself." With that she turned and walked back toward the elevator and out of sight.

_Now what in the hell was that about?_ Garrus blinked as he finally noticed that his cup had long since dried up and the data pad he had been "reading" was not on weapon schematics at all. He set it down on the table and started to wonder how long Yeoman Kelly had been watching him and if she was able to actually read the extranet page on where to get imported Turian chocolate. _I don't remember clicking on that page…_ Maybe his self-conscious was thinking about Shepard a little too much.

_Maybe she is right. Maybe you just didn't want to mourn Shepard and now that she is back there is no way to come to terms with those feelings._ This time he really did growl. _Shut up. It just means I was right and that I didn't have to "come to terms" with her death. I…_ He was not quite sure what he thought. _What? You didn't think about it really did you? Now it just means you have no way to mourn her._ That was a good thing right? _I don't know, is it?_ Garrus was suddenly not quite sure about himself. He was not quite sure why he did not want to mourn her the past two years. _Hell, everyone else sure did. Especially Kaidan. Shit, I even mourned Ashley with her…_ At that moment he knew there was something about Shepard that he could not let go of. He shrugged to himself and returned his pad to the page that actually had the Normandy weapon schematics on it. _I guess that is what best friends are for._

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><p>AN: BTW, the voice in Garrus's head is him talking to himself. We all do it, I just don't want anyone jumping to any weird conclusions.


	2. Chapter 2

A/n: Enjoy, slowly getting there and I need to go over these two chapters again. I am sure there are a few problems. Just wanted to get this up before bed.

Poor Garrus and Shepard. They don't realize it yet.

Update 3/30/12: A couple of grammar finds and broke up some stuff that I think will help with the chapter flow.

Update 4/11/12: Old ch 2 is now second part of ch 1 and can be found there respectfully. This is a whole new chapter adding into more in depth into both Shepard and Garrus's thoughts about each other. Wanted to also add more of the other crew members in and of course a little more on Kaidan. I haven't written a lot on EDI but hey, possible elevator malfunction or not? Hmm...

Upadte 4/20/12: Fixed up. Going to add more to this chapter at a later date.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

Jack's personality was as colorful as her body. At least that is what Garrus's first impression was of her. After Shepard managed to convince her not to bioticly smash them to pieces they dragged themselves off to the next dirt hole. It seemed like the places and people the Illusive Man had chosen for them to seek out and try to recruit were as bizarre as the man himself.

Ironically enough, as much as the Cerberus was willing to pay for the criminally biotic funfest, there was more money in trying to capture Shepard and her crew. Garrus snorted; _Mainly me, it's not like I made up the name Archangel, I just lived that part. I guess some things aren't really that easy._ How the warden found out about his other identity was interesting enough. Not even Aria on Omega was able put two and two together.

Regardless, Shepard did seem a bit more on edge about the ruse and Garrus could not help but notice how her omni-tool flickered a bit more as she had let her tech fly towards the inmates and guards alike. He silently wanted to comfort her about it like he used to when she would visit him and Ashley a few years back, but something told him it was more than just a little annoyance of one money hungry warden that was on her mind and it might be a good idea to let her cool off on her own.

Garrus stood up from the table to return his dish to Gardner before returning to the main battery. He was so engrossed in his own thoughts he did not see Jack before it was too late and ran into her. "Oh, Sorry, Jack." He tried to help the biotic stead herself.

"Fucking hell! Watch it you big lizard!" Jack spat at him menacingly. He gave her a second and moved off to the side. Garrus could tell that Jack really did not mean to be so vulgar all the time, it was just one of those bad side effects from her upbringing.

"Yeah. I should have watched where I was going. Sorry about that."

Jack shook it off visibly. "You better next time." She growled at him softly. "Anyways. I thanked Shepard earlier, but I guess I should thank you too for saving me from that shitty prison they had me in. She brought you along and at least it is good to see that there are others here that don't agree with Cerberus." He eyes narrowed as she watched Miranda walk to her room with a plate.

Garrus honestly did not see the "perfection" most would say about Miranda's body. To be honest, he really did not find Human females that attractive. Not saying that some would not be considered unattractive even by Turian standards, he just did not quite get it. Maybe it was all the genetic coding that made Miranda not that appealing in Garrus's eyes. _Compared to Shepard, Miranda is a cold-hearted bitch._ He shook his head at the thought, it sounded like something Jack would say and even though he agreed he was not sure why he was comparing.

"Yeah, at least we know that Cerberus can't always makes things 'perfect'" Garrus nodded his head and Jack rolled her eyes.

"It's whatever. Shepard gave me access to all the files here on the Normandy."

Garrus chuckled. "Sounds like something Shepard would do."

Jack studied him for a moment. "It's good to know the Commander has some friends outside that piece of shit organization."

"I don't really think she has any friends in Cerberus. Even with them bringing her back to life she has been a bit sore towards them."

"Wait, Shepard was dead?" The shock in Jack's voice told him nobody bothered to tell her that little piece of information. He nodded in answer. "Fuck man. That's harsh."

"Yeah, for two years. I was lucky enough that she was able to track me down before I got a good look down the barrel of a gunship. At least I can be here for her even if nobody will tell her were her other friends are."

Jack raised an eyebrow at him and gave his scratched up face a look over. "Never knew what it was like to have a friend. Let alone one who would drag my ass off after getting pummeled nearly to death."

Garrus choked on a laugh. "Well, she's just about the only one I have left."

Jack flashed that eerie smile at him and winked at him before she headed off on her way. "I'd hold onto her if I were you then."

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><p>Shepard was glad to have another Krogan on her side. Even if it took a bit roughing up to do so, it gave her a bit of a break from always having to be so nice. It was like having a young Wrex aboard and even though he had been a bit rugged, she had enjoyed their chats. They were insightful and brought a whole new perspective to things.<p>

Then the call came. The Collectors were on Horizon. They franticly tried to get there on time. It was horrifying to see how many people were taken from the colony. She wanted to scream until her voice went out. And then there was Kaidan. She was still tempered when she reached the Normandy again. Kaidan was making her blood boil.

_"You show up after two years and act like nothing happened? Thinking you were dead tore me apart, how could you put me through that?"_ She understood he had the right to be angry but to blame her for not trying to contact him? The way he spoke to her just made her want to slap him in the face. They had been close friends but that did not seem to matter to Kaidan.

Even after washing off the filth from the mission did not calm her down. She wanted to punch something. And punch it hard. The galaxy, however, was not going to wait while she had a little fit over something that should not even matter to her. She grumbled to herself and punched the elevator's panel. The elevator did not stop at the CIC like she wanted, instead the doors opened at the crew deck and to her surprise Garrus was standing at the door looking just as shocked.

"Oh, hey Shepard. I figured you'd be plotting our next mission by now." He tried to act like he was not a bit uncomfortable. Garrus had been there on Horizon with her standing next to her and trying to defend her. Instead, Kaidan had accused Garrus of being a traitor as well.

"I must have hit the wrong button." She really did think that she hit the correct one. _Maybe the elevator was malfunctioning_. She made a note to ask EDI to check the sensor logs and make sure everything was working correctly.

"I, uh, will let you be on your way." This time there was a hint of hurt in his voice.

Shepard shook her head. As much as she was upset at the moment, she could never put off Garrus. "No, its ok. I probably do need a friend right now." She was still a bit blind by her rage and if she started making decision right now she could make a fatal mistake.

Garrus stepped up into a stance with his hands behind his back and gave her a sidelong glance. "Good to know I still have one." Shepard smiled for a second before her expression fell. He glanced around before he leaned in a little. She could smell a hint of metallic musk when he did. It was a unique scent to her and it was not all that bad either. "I know you probably don't want to talk about it but Kaidan had no right to treat you like that. You were clinically dead for two years. I sure as hell don't blame you for not contacting me when you physically couldn't. If I was him I'd be just plain happy that you were back. Well… I mean I am, but… uh, you know what I mean."

Shepard grinned a little as he stumbled over his words and exited the elevator as not to feel awkward having a conversation over the elevator doors. "Glad I still have one friend who believes in me." She must have been more upset than she thought and her balance took the toll and she tripped over the floor plating and tumbled towards the floor.

"Shepard!" Garrus reached out and grabbed a hold of her in hopes of minimizing any harm to her. She blinked and looked up at him and saw a slight panic in his piercing blue eyes. His visor twisted as it focused on something she could not see. Her heart rate slightly increased and she gazed up at him awkwardly letting him hold her up like a rag doll. Silence followed a long moment where they just looked at each other and she never noticed that Garrus had lessened his grip on her but she had never let go of him.

Garrus cleared his throat, which broke into their awkward moment and looked off to both sides before looking back at her. He finally removed his hands and took the time to scratch at his bandage. _It must still bother him._ She stepped away hoping she did not do something wrong. "You know I will follow you into hell no matter what."

She finally was able to give him a genuine smile and it earned her a curious flare of his mandibles. "That's what I've always liked about you, Garrus. Thanks for always being there."

He titled his head to the side. "No problem. You've always been there for me." He looked around again and this time Shepard noticed.

"Are you ok?" All other thoughts were diminished. Her problems could wait if one of her crew, and friends at that, was having an issue with something.

"I… I found Sidonis…"

* * *

><p><em>The screen before Garrus blurred out of his vision. It was much to late to be up doing any sort of work, but it just did not feel right to be anywhere else but in the main battery. The door behind him hissed open and he turned to see a half dressed woman standing before him.<em>

_"Garrus." His vision finally focused and he saw that the woman was Shepard dressed in a shirt with a robe tied around it. He felt his mandibles flare uncontrollably at the sight of her half clothed and he leaned back to rest against the rail._

_"S-Shepard. It's late, shouldn't you be asleep like the rest of the crew?" There was general concern in his voice for many reasons._

_She shook her head and moved closer to him, triggering the doors to shut behind her. "I can't sleep."_

_The room seemed to close in on him and it became harder to breathe. "M-maybe we should wake up one of the doctors. Perhaps you are getting sick."_

_Again Shepard shook her head and continued to move closer to him. Garrus was starting to feel a little closed in and the air was abnormally thick. He tried to swallow but his body would not respond. "Garrus, I…" _

_She was so close to him he could smell her hair. It smelled like the ocean, sweet and salty with the hint of water. The scent was almost overwhelming and it reminded him of home. Somehow his hands had found her shoulders and he was looking down into her bright green eyes that were filled with sadness._

_"Garrus, I have missed you more than I could ever tell you." He felt his heart beat faster in his armor and somehow he felt a bit overdressed._

_"I have too, Shepard."_

_Shepard closed in and pressed her body against his armor. The blood in his veins pumped so hard he could barely hear anything else but her elevated breathing. Slowly he let his hands fall to open her robe and wrap his arms around her waist to pull her even closer. He bent his head down and rested it on her forehead. Shepard responded by bringing her hand up to trail the bullet marks on his torn armor and moving her face closer to his._

_"Garrus," Her warm breath tickled over the wounds still scaring on his mandible and he shivered inside his armor with anticipation. "I want you to make love to me."_

_Shepard's voice trembled slightly and he felt himself nodding in response as he proceeded to pull back her clothing and leaned in to bury his face into her neck._

* * *

><p>Garrus shot up from his bed feeling hot and out of breath. The room was still dark and the light noises told him that the rest of the crew was still deep in sleep. Slowly he let himself fall back down on the bed and was glad for the darkness. It would have been very embarrassing if it had not been and to wake up finding that his plates had shifted the way that they did after a dream like that. <em>Dear Spirits.<em> He swallowed the lump in this throat hoping his body would calm down enough to where he could go back to sleep.

Never had he dreamed about a woman like that before and definitely never about a human female. _Spirits, why Shepard?_ He could not stop hearing her voice in his head. _"Garrus, I want you to make love to me."_ Not once had a female ever said those words to him either. The things he wanted to do to her in that dream were unspeakable as well as unthinkable by any normal Turian. _It's not like she isn't attractive._ Garrus closed his eyes and sighed. Why was he even thinking about her like that? Shepard was his Commander and his best friend at that. She was there whenever he needed her. _Expect when…_ He stopped the thought short. He did not want to think about her being dead. She was alive now and that was what mattered.

For a while, he had wavered from what he thought was what she would do. His gang on Omega and all the criminals he put down, that was just a start. Shepard knew that revenge just ended dirty and a bad taste in your mouth. At first he was upset with her about talking him down from shooting Sidonis; she left him to his own thoughts like she had promised and he realized she was right, it just was not worth it. Sidonis may have done wrong to him, but he was not living anymore and if Garrus was not careful he would end up just like him.

Garrus did not want that. He wanted to be safe with his friends and family. He wanted Shepard to always be there. He wanted… _Well, after that dream, I'm not sure what I exactly want from Shepard._ Garrus rolled over on his side, glad his body finally calmed down and his plates where back where they should be. It was not like wanting to do things with a Human female was appalling to him it was just that the first time he ever thought about it Shepard came to mind. The fact that she really did smell like home did not help either. He sighed and closed his eyes again to let sleep overtake him. _It would be kind of nice to hold her like that just once._

* * *

><p>The Drell assassin was interesting enough. His skills were defiantly something to fear. And of course Shepard was going to play twenty questions with him just like she did with everyone she had ever served with. Garrus chuckled to himself as he clicked his data pad and mindlessly listened to the two conversed about Thane's life as an assassin. He was only mildly interested himself only in the fact of how Thane was paying a little more attention to Shepard than most people did. It was like he was studying her movements as well as her words. It was a bit ironic that he would be doing the same towards the Drell.<p>

_It's not like you two are mated._ Garrus snorted at the thought and tried to split his concentration between his work and the conversation again. He remembered the first time Shepard had asked him as many questions. It had been on the first Normandy well over two years ago a few days after he joined her crew. He remembered Ashley listening in on them and adding into the conversation a few times. _"Careful, Shepard. Paying that much attention to him may make him think you are 'interested' in him."_ Garrus had stood tall and answered the gunnery chief. _"Not at all. You humans are always so curious about everything it is hard to see that many questions as anything but."_ Thinking back on it now, he could have sworn Shepard's cheeks had turned a little pink. But that had been years ago and the lighting was not all that great.

_Keep staring at Thane like that and he will think you are "interested" in him._ Garrus returned his full attention back to his work and let the conversation blur out of notice. _Yeah, well it was only one dream about Shepard and it is not going any further than that._ The voice huffed at him._ Who said anything about Shepard?_ A small growl escaped before he could stop himself. Samara was sitting next to him at the table and glanced over at him and smiled.

"It's good to see that even though there is so much pain in the galaxy right now there is still room for a little love."

Garrus looked up at her and blinked confusingly. "Say what?"

"Oh nothing. Just talking to myself." Samara smiled again and stood up from the table and left towards the observation deck to meditate. _Why the hell is everyone acting so weird lately?_


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: It is really late. Finally finished a new chapter. There may be a few little awkward parts so I apologize a head of time if there are. If I see any mistakes I will fix them. I've been trying to also work on the other two chapters on fixing any problem areas and making it more streamline. Other than that. I think I am happy with how I ended the chapter and how it played out. Enjoy and r&r if you like. :)

Update: Ok wow, I so need someone that sits there and tells me when to just wait to post things. Found and corrected some really silly mistakes this morning after going though this chapter again. Also added more breaks to make the chapter flow better. Sorry about my silly grammar mistakes...

update 4/11/12: Added some more filler and took a small portion of the previous ch 4 to the end of this chapter. Also, yes, I do enjoy writing nervous Garrus. He is very adorable. :)

Update 4/20/12: A good sized revision here. Check it out, redid the interaction between Garrus and Shepard. I hope it works better than the previous one. If not, I will change it back.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3<br>**

Sadly, Shepard was welcoming the fights. She rubbed her temples with her fingers in an attempt to work out the tension. Miranda and Jake could tear each other apart for all she cared, but she did need both of them working at their full potential. _"I don't care if you two don't like each other. Just save your anger for the Collectors and when we are done, you two can hash it out in what ever way you want. But not on my ship, and not right now."_ It did not matter to her if they were both right and wrong at the same time.

At the moment, she only cared for the distractions the constant missions brought her. Distractions from things she was trying not to think about. Cerberus, the Collectors, and Kaidan and Garrus… Those last two were starting to become a problem. Kaidan was starting to get on her nerves and how rude he was to her on Horizon. Then there was the letter he sent her afterwards. _"I am sorry. I wasn't thinking when I saw you. It was bad enough finding out you were still alive for the past two years and not knowing it."_ Not like it truly matter to her. It was not like she had really shared much with him. Her thoughts drifted unwillingly towards her memories.

_As much as she tried, she could not sleep. She did not expect anyone else to either so when she heard the knock on her door it did not surprise her. "Yes?" The door hissed open and Kaidan stood in the walkway. "Oh, hi Kaidan." She half expected it to be Liara or Dr. Chakwas checking in on her to tell her to get some rest before the reached Ilos. Franticly Shepard pulled on her robe and tried to cover up her revealing clothing._

_"I… I thought you would like some company." After tying her robe shut she stood up to great him._

_"Uh, sure. Couldn't sleep?"_

_Kaidan walked in and sat in one of her chairs. "Yeah. Hell of a thing we are about to do. Could be our last night together."_

_ Shepard blinked at him confused. She had never been anything but nice to everyone on the ship. They were all her friends, like family to her now. "Maybe, but we are all in this together, we will make it through this."_

_Kaidan stood up and started to pace back and forth. "You may be right, but I… just can't help but think about certain things." Shepard crossed her arms and gave him a questioning look. "I… you know I respect you, Shepard. But I can't help…"_

_She did not even see him move toward her until he had planted a kiss squarely on her lips. Shepard froze in place in shock. Sure she had teased him, maybe even flirted a little, but she did that with just about everyone on the ship. It was just who she was, Shepard was just friendly with those she trusted and cared about. Kaidan broke off the kiss when he realized that she was not responding back to him._

_"Oh… I'm… I thought…" Shepard reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder._

_"Kaidan, it's ok. It is probably my fault." He looked away from her not wanted to look her in the face. "I love all of you guys. You are my family. Not saying I don't think you are attractive. Hell, if it had been under different circumstances…" She tried to give him a reassuring look._

_"Sure. That's just great. Good to know." He turned and started to leave._

_"Hey, you will find her some day." A small smile fractured across his face._

_"Yeah, well, nobody is like you, Commander."_

_"Goodnight, Kaidan."_

_"See you, Commander._"

Shepard shook off the memory and blinked as she skimmed through the dossiers on her screen. She was not sure what everyone's fascination with her was. _At least Garrus is cordial enough toward me. _She silently cursed herself for thinking that. That was her the other problem. Shepard found herself thinking about Garrus more often than she had ever thought about… well, anything ever before. Even while painting the other day she had inadvertently painted in his clan marks into the swirl of colors meant to simulate a scene at dusk on Earth. She had wanted to slash the canvas and discard it, but after looking at the beauty it represented she could not bring herself to destroy a work of art that bold. It now was tucked safely away behind her desk facing the wall so that nobody would accidentally come upon it.

To be frank, she was not sure what to think about her developing thoughts on the Turian. He had such a noble personality that called to her like a sense of duty. Shepard sighed and let the screen go out of focus._ "I don't think I am a very good Turian anymore. Putting myself before others is just not what we are thought."_ Sure he thought that way, but being able to admit such things made him seem more human to her. The terminal beeped with a new message from Kelly letting her know that Grunted wanted to know when they would be able to go to Tuchanka. She let out another sigh. The universe did not wait for one to think about mundane things when it needed saving.

* * *

><p>The drone of the battery was comforting after a few days out on a grimy planet. It was not like Garrus did not respect Wrex or the Krogan in general but the planet made the skin beneath his plates itch. Fighting off a Thresher Maw did not help either. They had not told them what they were getting into during Grunt's Rite of Passage. If he had known they would have been better prepared. Of course that was the whole point but they did not know Shepard had a history with Thresher Maws.<p>

_The ground crumbled and dust filled the already thick air. Garrus could hear Grunt screaming at his side if that was all they had to pit against them. A loud screech had stopped him dead in his place. He knew that sound. He remembers the first time he heard it in the Mako and how Shepard had just froze there._

_"Shepard?"_

_Garrus looked towards her and saw her frozen in place staring blankly at the giant ground worm that burst through the earth. Grunt cried out with joy and ran towards the creature lying in fire as he did. The Maw rose up and prepared itself to spit its poisonous acid at them but Shepard refused to move._

_"Damn it, Shepard. Move!"_

_She could not hear him in her trance. He cursed himself and charged towards her pulling them both into a small crevice out of the sight of the Maw just at the last second. Acid splattered the wall behind where she had been standing just seconds before. His breathing was irregular and he pushed her up against the rock to protect her from seeing the creature. Finally she looked up at him and blinked confusingly. Her hair was half pulled out of its ponytail from the previous fights and he could smell the sweat and dirt stuck to it. Garrus fought back the urge to touch her, to pull the offensive clumps out of her hair and shield her away from danger with his body._

_"Shit."_

_ He closed his eyes and swirled around and took out his rifle to help Grunt. Shepard gripped tightly to the sides of his armor and he let her pull on him for protection. They were not doing much damage to the creature and Garrus glanced over at his shoulder to make sure Shepard was safe. Rock stared back at him. He mentally kicked himself and looked for her franticly. A large explosion shook the air and he looked over to see her holding a discharged heavy weapon in her hands._

_There was still an ungodly amount of fear in her eyes and Grunt cheered loudly over the crumbling earth as the Maw fell dead to the ground. Garrus was glad she was okay and the awkward moment of being too close to her passed. She shook her head at him in pleading silent words to not tell anyone that she choked under pressure. He nodded once and let out a sigh wishing she were still holding onto him for just another moment._

Garrus sighed and was glad to be away from the dirt. He did not mind as much that he had sat out another mission at this point. Even though being dragged around everywhere with Shepard was becoming more appealing and distracting, he had enough after getting all mucked up on the Krogan home world. _Besides the extra time gave me enough time to finish upgrading the Normandy's weapons_. The door hissed open behind him and he turned to greet the only person who would dare bother him in the middle of the day.

"Hey, Shepard." He tried to keep himself calm. It had been a while since they had talked alone. _And after that dream…_

"Hi, Garrus. I didn't interrupt anything did I?" He could tell she was always nervous about distracting him in the middle of a calibration.

"No. I just finished the latest upgrades on the Normandy's weapons. Can't wait to see this baby in action." She awarded him with a smile on her pink glossy lips and sat down on one of the crates next to his workbench, folding her graceful legs underneath her.

"You know, we haven't really caught up in a while." Shepard played with a lose strand of hair that had fallen out of her ponytail.

"Yeah, after Sidonis…" His thoughts wavered as he studied the way she moved in her light clothing. After knowing her for so long he always thought how strange it was that with Shepard's military upbringing she was into such unique fashion. Perhaps it was the way she was not afraid to show people who she was and her clothing emphasized that. He started to wonder what she looked like under all that clothing but stopped himself before it went any further. "You know, I never really told you thank you for that."

Shepard giggled. "Yeah you did." Garrus huffed in answer to her light tone.

"I… I just don't do well with gray that's all."

"It's ok, Garrus. I understand." She smiled at him again as they looked at each other for a long moment. "You do look a little more preoccupied in general though."

_To put it mildly,_ Garrus thought. "Yeeaah. Well, Turians deal with stress differently than you humans seem too."

"Oh? How so?" Her inviting tone made Garrus laugh lightly. Shepard was one who never judged anyone or a culture without knowing the facts.

"Well, Turian ships are a little more strict on operational discipline than human ships but have fewer personal restrictions. We also have training rooms for exercise and training vids. Our officers know we need to blow off steam so full contact sparring is sometimes encouraged."

Shepard eyed him for a moment as she thought about what he was telling her. After a few moments of studying each other quietly she slid off the box and walked right up to him.

"I've got an idea." She grabbed a hold of his armored hand and pulled, leading him out of the battery.

"W-where are we going?" The sudden actions left him stunned and a little weak at the knees, so he let her lead.

"The cargo hold." Shepard answered him without looking at him and his heart started beating faster.

"Why?" He was a little dazed at this point and with her hand wrapped around his was starting to wish he was not wearing his armor.

"So we can spar." Garrus froze and his feet planted firmly in place on the floorboard. His dead weight caused Shepard to stop and turn to look at him. Regardless how strong she was, there was no way she was going to be able to move a conscious, fully armored Turian. Her brow wrinkled up in confusion and he was really hoping that she was just kidding around. "What's the matter?"

"I… We can't spar." _What in the hell is she thinking?_

Her hand was still hold his and he swallowed the lump forming in his throat as she cocked her head to the side curiously. "Why not?" Garrus started to open his mouth. "You just told me that a little sparing helps ease the nerves; and to be honest, everyone, including me, is a little on edge. A little sparing will do both of us some good."

Shepard caught him off guard by moving quickly again and he lurched forward as she resumed her previous path through the oddly empty mess hall.

"But…" Shepard pushed the button for the elevator.

"I haven't had time for any really good workouts in the past two years." She gave him a look sideways out of the corner of her eye.

"Turians have supervision." the elevator doors opened.

"We are both adults. I'm sure we know how to restrain ourselves." She pulled him inside the elevator.

"But I don't have my sparing gloves."

"You're what?"

"I… Talons, I don't want to hurt you with my talons." The doors hissed shut.

"I trust you. Not like the we don't have two doctors aboard."

"But…" Shepard let go of his hand.

"We are sparing."

Shepard's voice was a little sharper then usual and he finally decided he was not the only one a little over stressed. _Maybe a little sparing won't be that bad._ Garrus shut his mouth and let her hit the button for the cargo bay. After accepting that there was no way out of it, he was starting to wish she had not let go of his hand. The air in the small elevator became dense and hard to breathe. He rolled his shoulders and neck, hoping it would stop feeling hot inside it.

The elevator finally stopped and opened up to an empty cargo hold. Garrus watched her as she stepped out and started rummaging through some of the lockers. After a few minutes she pulled out long padded mats and dragged them to the center of the room.

"Unless you plan on bruising me with that armor of yours, I suggest you take it off, officer."

Shepard gave him a sidelong glance as she continued to move around the mats. He could tell she was trying to tease him and give him an order at the same time, but in the long run, she was right. The clicking sounds his armor made as he unhooked and placed it on the floor echoed off the metallic walls. It almost felt like a dream as he stripped down to his flight suit. Although he was still glad it covered just about his entire body. _Turians just don't run around in these… even on full Turian ships. _Garrus stole a glance at Shepard from the side and saw her pulling off her shirt. He dropped a piece of his armor and it bounced loudly on the floor. Shepard turned to see if everything was all right and his heart only slowed a little when he noticed she was still covered by clothing. For the most part at least, there was a tight piece of clothing covering her chest but showed off her shoulders and flat stomach.

"Ready?"

She drew up a stance on one side of the mat. Garrus noted the small cracks in her skin that had not fully healed yet and the cybernetics that glowed threw them. He thought he had it bad, hers must itch constantly.

"Y-yeah," _Not really,_ "I don't think I have much of a choice though."

Shepard jabbed out at him. He dodged her first strike by only a fraction. _She's faster than I remember._ Again she came at him, but this time he was only able to block her moves. He watched the way her muscles tensed and flexed with each move, both were very unfamiliar to him. _She must have a good deal of stress built up. Maybe it's not a bad idea. At least she will wear herself out._ Shepard pulled away and he took note from his visor readings that her pulse had increased and was holding steady.

"Come on, Garrus. Hit me!" She did not sound short of breath but her voice sounded a bit strained.

"What?" _Did she ask me to hit her?_

"You know what I mean."

"But…"

"Vakarian!"

After all they had been through, Shepard had only called him by his last name the first few weeks he had joined up with her the first time. Since then she had always used his first name, always. It came as a shock to him and he reacted involuntarily like he had so many times during his military career. He threw a punch at her. He had barely enough sense to clutch his talons inward at the last second before his muscles tensed up for the hit. His skin touched her flesh, but not in the way he had intended it to. A tiny hand grabbed a hold of his wrist and he just stared at it. It felt warmer then he expected, and soft, very soft.

The next thing he knew he was looking up at the ceiling. He was not sure how, but Shepard was able to flip him over and he had landed on the mat on his back. The warmth around his wrist was gone and he blinked. Garrus let out a little growl. No woman had ever put him on his back. He flipped himself up and no longer held back as he let loose and sparred against Shepard.

Some of the moves she threw at him would have been considered "dirty" in Turian terms, but Shepard's upbringing told him that it must not be for Humans. _She sure seems to move like she has done it a million times. Almost trained into her._ After a while, both of their movements became sluggish and he started to feel the fatigue creep up on him. He really did not want to loose so when he saw the opening he took it, only to find himself on his back again. _Oh that's it._ Garrus lied there and shifted his legs around and kicked hers out from beneath her. Shepard squealed and landed next to him in a heap, both of them grasping for air. She rolled over onto her back and pushed herself up.

"Well… that went well."

Garrus pushed himself up to and chuckled. "More like a draw."

"You just don't want to admit that I can beat you." She snickered at him playfully. He gave her a look and she swallowed visibly. "So, what do you Turians do when you have a tie?"

He scratched at his bandage. "Well, I'd have to say it doesn't happen too often. This one time a reconnaissance scout and I were at each other's throats constantly and when we settled it in the ring the ref ended having to call a draw after nine rounds."

"Oh, so what happened?"

"Well, she… ah… had flexibility and I had reach. And being the top hand-to-hand combat specialist made for some interesting rounds. Needless to say, we ended up holding the tiebreaker in her quarters… Another way to work off stress I guess."

Garrus snapped back to reality as the words left his mouth. What in the hell did he just tell her? _Ah, shit._ He felt a little embarrassed and that was when he noticed that when he had moved his hands to push himself up he had placed it on top of Shepard's. She had not tried to pull it away and it felt tiny and soft beneath his. He wanted to pull his fingers closed around it. Garrus swallowed and took the chance to look over at her. Her face was very close to his and he could see the strands of hair falling out of her ponytail.

"Sounds like we need to hold a tiebreaker."

It was barely a whisper but Garrus heard her like it was the only sound in the universe. She smelt sweet with a hint of sweat from their workout, but nothing too offensive. Her unwavering green eyes stared into his and he looked at her up and down quickly. He watched her chest muscles rise and fall and her eyes dilate slightly. The hum of the ship droned between them and he swore that space was getting smaller.

"I…"

The sound of the elevator doors made them both jump. Garrus quickly pulled away from Shepard, hand and all, as a group of crewmembers flooded the room.

"Hey, bitches. I thought there was a fight going on?" Jack pushed her way threw from the back of the group.

"Grunt told us you two were down here at each other like wild animals." Kelly looked a little worried as she looked them both over from a distance.

"We are ok. Just thought a friendly little spar would be nice. I haven't really worked out in ages and Garrus offered to help me out."

Garrus snap his head back at her from looking up at the windows noticing that Grunt did have a nice full view of the cargo hold from his room up above. He had been plotting ways to get back at the Krogan that he did not have time to form a response to what Shepard was telling her crew. His mandibles flared as he studied her face turn a little pink and not from their bout either.

"That's good. The Illusive Man would be upset if you did any real damage to yourself." Miranda crossed her arms and gave them a stern look.

"Yeah, yeah. Well, a bimbo like you would go crying the first time you crack a nail." Jack and Miranda glared at each other again and little blue sparks flickered around both of them.

"Pah. Sounds like you two need some sparing too." Kelly stated sarcastically and turned away from the group.

Shepard picked herself up off the mat and Garrus scrambled in suit. "That's actually a good idea."

"What?" Both Jack and Kelly sounded surprised.

"I, uh, have some diagnostics to run." Garrus did not think anyone heard him nor cared.

"It's a good way to work off stress. God knows we all need it." She followed Garrus over to the corner and picked up her previously discarded shirt. "Just… keep the biotics off. We don't need any holes in the hull or things… breaking. And keep it friendly." She glared at Jack and Miranda. "As much as you can."

The crew all looked a little surprised at Shepard's suggestion and got a few shrugs from the non-Cerberus members. Garrus started to pick up his pieces of armor and gave Shepard a questioning glance as she helped him and loaded her arms with the few he could not. By the time they had all the pieces, Jack was trying very hard to kick Miranda in the stomach and the rest where placing bets on who would win the fight.

"Shepard," Thane had been quite the whole time and Garrus almost overlooked him. "You should stay and spar with them."

Garrus could hear the underlining tone the Drell was trying to hide. Shepard shrugged. "I've got some work that needs to be done. Besides, I think Garrus needs some help with caring his armor."

"I could do that for you."

"I'm fine. Besides, I think you could show everyone up here anyways." She gave him a wink and continued to walk towards the elevator. Thane rushed over and pressed the button for her.

"At least you should get yourself checked up."

Shepard laughed. "I trusted Garrus and he didn't scratch me once. I will be fine."

Finally Thane gave up and nodded. He rejoined the rest of the group and Garrus felt a little achieved. The elevator doors finally closed and Shepard let out a sigh. Silence enveloped them for a long time before Garrus could even speak.

"Well, that was…"

"Fun." Shepard finished for him. He looked over at him and flicked his mandibles. "So how about that tiebreaker?"

Garrus nearly dropped his armor. "I, uh…"

"I don't mean right now." She gave him a devious grin and scooted closer. Her eyes looked up at him again and he felt strangely hot in his flight suit.

"Um, well… Sure, why the hell not." _Wait, what?_ He was not sure what he was saying, or that she knew what she was asking. _Of course she does!_ Well, it did not account for why he was even agreeing. _You agreed to the spar._ Garrus mentally shook his head. _I didn't agree!_ He growled at the other voice. _No, but you were dreaming about it._ Shepard smiled at him and his face felt hot. It drove all the other thoughts from his head and he wished he was holding her and not his armor.

"You going to stand there all day?"

He was so enthralled in his own thoughts he never noticed the elevator had stopped and Shepard was standing in the hall waiting for him. Garrus forced himself to move and tried to ignore the glances Gardner was giving him as they passed by. The main battery gave him a secure feeling and he placed his armor down, Shepard following his example.

"Um… so…" Garrus scratched at his bandage. It itched more than normal this time. Shepard smiled at him and he swallowed. "I didn't think you had a weakness for men with scars." It was the only thing he could think to say and Shepard giggled at him.

"Only on you, Garrus." She smiled again and he saw her eyes dilate at him slowly. His mandibles twitched; he wanted to touch her but he thought against it. It was not the place to do such a thing. "I, um, will let you get back to work."

Garrus coughed and saw the pink returning to her cheeks. "Y-yeah, because I am in the best situation to do firing algorithms right now." _Seriously?_

"I will see you later, Garrus." Shepard giggled.

After placing a hand on top of his for half a second she turned and walked out of the battery. He watched her until the doors slid shut. _The most spectacular woman in the galaxy just hit on you and all you could say was something about calibrations?_ Garrus growled louder than he expected. _Not now._ He was in no mood to have words with himself. _Then when? _Garrus gripped the terminal in front of him. _Well, I sure didn't ask for it!_ The voice snorted. _No, you just dream about it constantly._ His hands started to tremble. _But I…_ The voice cut him off. _Why did you say yes then?_

Garrus stopped and stared down at his naked hands. The feeling of her skin on his felt so surreal. It was tender, but strong; just like Shepard's personality and he wanted to touch it again. He knew why he had said yes. _She is the only friend I have left. The only one I could ever trust and respect._ _Spirits, I want to be with her._ Garrus looked over at the panel. He checked the time and decided to wait five more minutes. His skin itched from the sweat he had worked up while sparring and he was in need of a shower, possibly a cold one.

_Besides, it's not like she isn't attractive even by Turian standards. Just… different._ Different did not mean bad or wrong, it meant he was going to have to work to make it go right. That did not surprise Garrus; Shepard had always been like that. Finally, he worked up enough courage to walk to the showers. He just hoped that Gardner would not stop him to question why he was dressed the way he was. It had been one hell of a day.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: This chapter ended up being longer than I had expected. Enjoy! r&r if you like! :)

update 4/11/12: Added a tiny bit to expand on what Garrus thinks. Not much else right now.

Update 4/20/12: More fixes.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

Shepard was not sure how but after running around on Tuchanka and helping out Kasumi had helped her clear her head of a few thoughts. Seeing Wrex was a breath of fresh air. _It was nice to see he will always be a hard ass. _With Grunt and Mordin off her back about things they had settled down and started really working on the task at hand. Mordin was finally opening up and now she saw him just as much as she visited Dr. Chakwas. The way he scattered across everything was just so much fun to watch and she always smiled after a visit with him. And Grunt stopped acting like he was going to tear the bulkheads from the hull.

_"Why can't we just take him to Omega and get him a few lap dances?"_ Shepard could not help but giggle to herself when Garrus had mentioned this in front of Wrex. Wrex had just given him this look before turning his gaze on her and grinning. It was like he knew something that even she did not know. "Hey, Gardner? Would you send my diner to my quarters tonight?"

The chef hid his face and busied himself with what looked like some sort of soup. "Sure thing Commander. It will be ready in an hour."

She thanked him and headed towards the elevator. Oddly enough, she was happy to have Kasumi on board. When the thief fist approached her Shepard was skeptical. But after seeing what she was really up to Shepard could not help but feel a little jealous. Even with her lover gone Kasumi still found peace and love in those memories. Shepard did not have anything like that. It had got her thinking about her life and why she never pursued a real relationship with anyone. _Well, it wasn't like I really had the time for it. And there weren't really too many people she trusted enough to go further than a few nights in bed with._ That was before she realized that she did have someone she cared about more than the rest. _Maybe that was why I never went for Kaidan. My heart already knew that he wasn't for me._

Shepard had been thinking hard the past couple of days on how to ask the Turian about pursuing a relationship together. She had been making it a point to talk to him last just in case she did find a way so that she did not seem distracted when talking to anyone else. _Until today, I thought I was going to have to come out and say: Hey, wanna come up to my room and do it Garrus?_ A smile broke across her face as she hit the button to send the elevator up. Thankfully she did not have to. Shepard sighed and leaned up against the wall. Her skin itched with sweat and she could not wait to shower. It was going to be a slow process with him, but the door was open and she had one foot in. _It is definitely a start._

* * *

><p>"So how long have you known the Commander, Garrus?" Thane asked over his bowl of soup.<p>

_Why does everyone keep asking me that?_ Diner was the time that everyone seemed to try to get to know one another that were true, but Garrus was normally not part of that particular discussion. _I guess they have run out of things to ask each other. _He poked his food while he thought about how to answer the curious Drell. "Well, we met back on the Citadel while I was investigating Saren. We kind of lost contact after she… well died I guess you could say."

"Only three fucking years?"

Jack was starting to warm up to them in her own odd way. She still did not get along with Miranda very well but she was at least trying, they had obviously had a good laugh down in the cargo hold earlier. But that foul mouth of hers had shown any signs of slowing down though.

Garrus swallowed his food before answer her. "Yeah, I guess it has been that long."

Joker laughed and shifted in his seat. "I remember that day. You and Wrex were fighting down in the cargo hold when Shepard came in and smacked both of you in the face and told you girls to quit bickering and act like a pair of ladies at a knitting club and to play nice."

Joker earned a stern glare from him while the rest of the crew joined in the laughter. "That's all fine and dandy, Moon Boy. At least Shepard doesn't have to worry about breaking my bones when she decides to ruff me up."

"Oh, ouch, Garrus." Joker placed his hands over his heart dramatically and a few of the crew hid smiles behind their hands.

"Moon Boy?" Kasumi asked. Joker shook his head vigorously at him in a pleading way.

Garrus chuckled. "Yeah. This one time Shepard and Ashley got really drunk and were going around bugging everyone. I happened to be up in the cockpit talking to Joker when they came in singing. Joker had told them that kind of singing should be reserved to clubs where you couldn't hear them over the music. That had turned their attention to him and they started singing to him. Oh what was that song again?" He cocked his head to the side and tried to look innocent. Joker mumbled something under his breath. "Something about flying them to the moon?"

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up. At least I can do something for her." Joker huffed, raising his head proudly and crossed his arms.

"I dunno. Shepard did seem a little impressed by his calibrations earlier today." Kasumi whispered lightly. Garrus turned his head quickly toward her. _What did she just say?_ Kasumi was acting like she had not said a thing and nobody else seemed to notice as the conversation turned towards Joker and his ability to fly the ship. After a moment, Kasumi looked up from under her hood and gave him a little smile. _Wait… But when… was she listening to us? _ He tried to remember if he saw her with the rest of the crew that had showed up after his spar with Shepard. Garrus shook his head and returned to his diner. _At least it seemed like she was not going to start any real gossip any time soon_.

* * *

><p>Garrus poured himself a drink of Turian brandy and sat down to watch the stars go by. The observation lounge was surprisingly quiet for an evening. That was fine with him as he was content for some quiet time. Normally Samara would be meditating on the floor but Shepard had promised to help her track down her daughter. He was not sure what all that entailed but she seemed to not want to talk to him about it. Garrus sighed and closed his eyes and listened to the ice in his drink crack. He was finally getting over the idea of taking Shepard to bed. It did not really seem like a bad idea anymore. And the more he thought about it, the more reasons he found to want to. <em>Maybe I never thought about it before, but then again who knows what I would have thought if she had asked long before.<em>

The voice in the back of his mind huffed. _Or you would have just dreamt about it for the rest of your life and done nothing about it._ Garrus took a long drink of his brandy. _Maybe. But now I can really think about doing those things to…_ A thought suddenly crossed his mind. Shepard was not a Turian. Sure their body structure may be somewhat similar but Garrus had no idea what she really looked like under her clothing. Whether their "parts" were even compatible in that way. She sure was flexible, he found that out yesterday when she kicked at him higher than he had ever seen a Turian female. But that did not change the fact that she was much softer than what he was used to. This started a whole new line of thoughts on what he could do to her verse what he probably should not do. _Yeeah, I probably should look some of that stuff up so I don't make a complete fool of myself._

It did not stop him from thinking about how graceful her body moved even when in bulky armor. How she smelled of the ocean and sometimes crushed citrus whenever she was near. He wondered just how smooth the rest of her body really was and how it would feel in his hands. And her hair, he would admit he did not have a fetish for Humans, but her hair was something else. He plain just wanted to touch it and dig his face in it to catch its aroma.

The door behind him hissed, breaking him from his thoughts and he turned to look to see if Samara was returning. "Oh, hey Thane. Thought you might be Samara coming back to reclaim her solitude." Thane nodded in acknowledgment.

"Mind if I join you?" _Not particularly._ But Garrus did not want to be rude and waved toward the empty couch as an invitation. The Drell sat down respectfully on the other side and placed his hands together in his normal manner. "I have been meaning to ask you something."

Garrus took a sip of his drink. "Shoot."

Thane leaned forward and rested his elbows on his legs. "I wanted to ask how well you knew the Commander." Garrus stopped in the middle of his drink and tried not to give him a worried look. "For someone who has so many friends she seems… quite lonely."

"Oh, Yeah. I guess she does." He never really thought of it that way. "I guess we are all kind of lonely in our own way."

"Hmm, when you put it that way, I guess you are right." Thane looked off to the side as though he was lost in a private thought.

"I've known her so long I guess I just find her behavior normal."

"Is she…" He stared at him with his dark black empty eyes. "Always nice to everyone?"

Garrus was starting to wonder if the Drell assassin had feelings towards Shepard. He started to feel a little guilt for wanting to spend so much time with her. "Yeah. Ever since I joined up with her over three years ago I found that she was always nice to everyone if she could help it. Not saying she doesn't have a mean side, but she would talk to you about anything for hours on end. She had a way of… getting underneath your skin, as she would put it. And by the time you noticed, you would have spilled your life to her. Shepard had a knack for it. Brought out the best in a lot of people while she was at it."

Thane nodded at his words and sat there quietly for a while. "Thank you, I have much to think on. I won't waste any more of your time."

Garrus raised his glass to him in a farewell. _Really? You didn't even talk to me that long. What in the world could I have said that… _His thoughts stopped midway and were suddenly placed with another more frightening one. _Wait. What if Shepard only asked me because she feels lonely? I know I'm not the best looking guy in the galaxy and certainly the least familiar to her._ Suddenly his drink tasted way too bitter for him. _Great, now I have gone and ruined my drink._

* * *

><p>"Seriously, Commander?" EDI's voice echoed over the com as Shepard targeted the planet's surface and launched a probe. "Probing Uranus." There was a distinct waver in EDI's voice buffer that almost sounded like annoyance. She could not help but giggle.<p>

"Yeah, maybe you are right EDI. But we do need some more iridium. Jacob has been asking for materials to upgrade our hand weapons."

"That may be apical, Commander. However, Uranus is a poor supply of iridium."

Shepard grinned as she skimmed through her database for a better source of the metal. "Just keeping you on your toes, EDI."

"I do not have any 'toes' to stand on, Commander."

"That was a joke, EDI." She rolled her eyes and set in a new course to Joker.

"Setting course now, Commander." Joker's voice filled the room. "ETA two hours to the relay."

"Thank you, Joker."

Helping Samara with her daughter was physically draining. It had also left her feeling a bit griming and itchy. And her need to get the feeling of her brain creaking she needed to ease a little tension. The sparring had helped her the other day, but after letting Samara's daughter get so close to her the tension in her temples was back again. The girl just gave her an uneasy feeling and she was glad that this Ardat-Yakshi was not going to be a problem to anyone anymore. Shepard exited the conference room and headed to check on the upgrade terminal.

"Hey, Mordin." The Salarian doctor was busy with his hand as usual.

"Ah, Commander. Wanted to talk. Got a minute." It was strange for Mordin to ask about something first so she guessed it was probably important.

"Sure, what's up?" Shepard rested her arms on his desk.

"Aware that mission is dangerous. Different species react differently to stress." Shepard blinked at him. _Um, ok…_ "Sexual activity normal for humans and Turians. Still, recommend caution, warn of chaffing."

Shepard's elbow slipped off the table in shock and she rubbed it harshly. "I… uh… Wait… How would you know…"

"Safety of crew is important. Regardless, come see me afterward. Chaffing."

"Ok, I get it. Don't worry, Mordin. Garrus means a lot to me. I will be cautious." _As much as I can that is._

"Good." Mordin activated his omni-tool and started fiddling with it. "Sending you information booklet, Turian anatomy, valuable diagrams, positions comfortable for both species, erogenous zone overviews. Can supply ointments or oils to help with discomfort. Also can have EDI aid in demonstration vids if necessary."

Shepard coughed uncomfortably. "Er, Thank you, Mordin. I think I will be ok on that one." _That is just what I need, another thing for EDI to be digging into._

"Another thing, Turian DNA based on dextro-amino acids. Can cause anaphylactic shock. Do not… um… ingest."

She shook her head and covered her face with a hand. "Tell you what, I will call for you if I need anything."

"Please do, will be here." Mordin smiled like he always did and went straight back to work.

* * *

><p>Garrus kept glancing down the hall waiting to hear Shepard's voice. He had been anxious to talk to her since his little chat with Thane. He stared at the console without really seeing it. <em>Why am I so anxious about it anyways? It's not like she didn't plainly ask me up to her room on accident. Not with that look in her eyes.<em> Finally after what seemed like an eternity he heard her velveteen voice laughing near the kitchen. Garrus tried not to look hurried as he spun around and walked toward her. _Slowly, don't want to look too suspicious. _Her voice was accompanied by another famine yet familiar voice.

"Keelah!" Came a squeal as Shepard came into view. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes, Garrus."

"Hey Tali. Come to join the fight finally?" Garrus tried not to let his voice shake. He really wanted Shepard alone.

Tali placed her hands on her hips. "Bah, you would all be lost without me."

"Luckily we haven't run into too many Geth just yet. Um, Shepard? When you have a minute I will be in the main battery." He did not want to sound rude but he was having a really hard time talking at the moment. Tali turned to look at Shepard and she placed a hand on her arm. _It is just so damn hard to know what those Quarians are thinking behind those masks of theirs._

"You go on ahead, Tali. The engines are always yours."

"Thank you, Shepard." Tali bowed and turned around and walked toward the elevator.

As soon as they were both inside the battery, Garrus clicked his console and closed the doors. This earned a raised eyebrow from Shepard. "You wanted to talk?"

"Ah… Yes. I… I've been thinking about our talk about blowing off steam and easing tension…" He was pacing again, this time in front of her. "Look… I know you could find someone a little closer to home."

Shepard grabbed his arm to stop his movements. All the sudden his armor started to feel hotter than normal, he really wanted to feel her skin again. "Garrus, I don't want someone 'a little closer to home'. I want someone I can trust. I want you." Those emerald eyes bore into him again and he could not stop looking into them. He had longed for her to say those words, to hear her say she wanted to be with him.

"Oh, ah. Ok. I just wasn't sure. We were both kind of worked up from our spar the other day. And I… just thought that maybe you had others in mind or before that you… You know, you and Kaidan were always so…" Everything was coming out all wrong. He could not figure out what to say.

Shepard laughed. "Kaidan? That is what has gotten you all worried?" _Well, not precisely but…_ "Look Garrus," Her hand slowly let go of his arm and was traveling down toward his hand. _Is it getting even hotter in here?_ "There was never anything between me and Kaidan. Nor anyone else we have served with. I am not going to pretend that I am new at any of this, you sure aren't, but it isn't about anyone else. It is about us."

Garrus swallowed. He really wanted his godforsaken armor off. It was getting hard to breath. And he wanted to feel her hand on top of his; he wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let go. "Yes. Us. So… there is an us?" Talking was becoming increasingly difficult at this point and he hoped that he sounded like he was interested in the concept because he really was.

Shepard smiled at him and he nearly lost control of his knees. "Only if you want there to be."

"Of course I do." Garrus managed to say; at least he thought he did. The look she gave him told him that he had.

Eventually time caught up and Shepard removed her hand from his and started to walk toward the door. _Please don't go right now._ He wanted to say that but he knew that it would be very bad to be caught messing around with the Commander in the main battery of all places. While the idea of copulating with her right now was very appealing but would more than likely not end the way he would like it to.

_Well, you big lizard, what do you want from her?_ Garrus could not answer that. He was not really sure if it was just sexual tension or if he wanted something more from it all. Once he tackled one thing he would work on the next. All he knew was that for right now he wanted to take her up to her room and show her that she was a woman that he wanted to be with, even if it was only for a short while.

"I've still got a few things to do, but come see me sometime later ok?"

"Yeah. I will." At this point he was not sure how he was still talking.

"Oh" Shepard stopped short before the doors. "I ran into Mordin and he sent me some information packets that I think are meant for more than just me. I will forward them when I get the chance."

_Information packets? What in the world is she talking about?_ He nodded and watched her leave the room. As soon as the doors hissed closed again he franticly tapped at the environmental controls and lowered the temperature by a few degrees. A blue light illuminated the room from behind.

"There has been a change in temperature that is well bellow the comfort level for Turians in this room, Officer Vakarian. Do you need assistance?"

"No EDI, I am fine. It is just a little warmer in here than usual and my armor isn't helping with that."

"It would not be a problem to call one of the doctors if you are feeling ill."

"It's ok, EDI. If I need anything I will let you know." Garrus hung his head and gripped the console in front of him and tried to steady his breathing. The light faded and left him to his own demise. He was just glad that he was able to get that out of the way and not worry about it anymore. At least he knew that she was not going to be backing out any time soon. _Good, because once I find out how I am going to take her up on it._

* * *

><p>Glancing back down Garrus was quite glad for private terminals for Shepard had finally forwarded the information she had gotten from Mordin. He was almost a little embarrassed by it if it did not pertain to his and Shepard's possible relationship status. <em>Yes, call it a possible relationship status and that would make it all that much better. <em>And sometimes his own brain made him a bit embarrassed. It was not a possibility it was a reality. Sure, he would probably never have thought about such things before and definitely not with anyone else in mind, but with Shepard anything was possible. He was becoming increasingly preoccupied with the idea of wanting to explore those ideas and concepts with her. It was a bit exciting to think about having a secret liaison with his best friend and the Commander Shepard.

_Well, it would be secret if we weren't on a ship full of spies who love to gossip._ Between EDI's ability to be everywhere at once, Kasumi's cloak, Jack's nosiness, and Kelly's all knowing behavioral expertise he was quite sure almost everyone was whispering about them. _If they aren't already, they will more than likely find out one way or another whether we like it or not._

Quite a few of the concepts were not that far fetched as Garrus thought they might be. They were actually more similar that what he gave credit to. It was not going to be all that difficult. There might be a few awkward moments of finding out how to make things work correctly but he was sure that the end result would be pleasant enough for both of them. Now he could concentrate on those few things he really wanted to do to her.

Although he had forgotten that being Human meant he was going to have to be a little more gentle with her than any other partner he had before. Humans were fleshy everywhere and if he did not pay attention he could end up hurting her. There was also a warning that because of his harder body there could be chaffing involved so he read more details into it. _Ok, I defiantly can do that._

After reading over the basics of the material from Mordin he thought about doing a little extra research on how to work up the mood between them. _It's can't be that hard though, a little something to drink and some music. Not like I can afford much on my salary._ Now there was the problem on finding something to drink.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Warn of... chafing... and smuttiness. lol. Just be forewarned. But hey, if you are reading this because you are in love with femShepXGarrus there can't be any reason why you are looking forward to that one smutty chapter. Oh wait, you are reading this! lol. Anyways, I have always tried to keep those types of scenes as tasteful as possible. I have never cared for the sex to be written vulgarly. Enjoy!

Update 4/11/12: Added a few more things in and took first part of ch and moved to ch 4.

Update 4/20/12: More fixes and added some more fillers and thoughts.

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

"I wish you could still come with us, Liara." Shepard's screen fazed a little as it switched to a better sync wave.

"Me too. But I think I am getting close to finding some good leads on the Shadow Broker. After your help with Nyxeris it has been increasingly difficult to ask for help. I am sorry, Lexi. I really am."

Shepard smiled at her over her screen. Even though she missed having Liara around, she completely understood where she was coming from. "It's ok. Really it is. When you are ready to join up you know how to find me."

They shared a few more pleasantries before Liara finally politely said goodbye. Shepard sighed and picked up one of the few pictures she ever really kept._ I wish you were here too Ash. I could use my little sisterly advice from time to time._ Ashley was not really her sister, but it felt like it sometimes. They had shared a lot of things together over the time Ashley was with them on the Normandy. Ash had even gotten Liara to open up a bit as well.

Setting down the picture, Shepard got up and brushed off her cloths out of pure habit. There were things that still needed to be done and a few things she needed to finish up on the presidium. Anderson deserved another visit and Captain Bailey had asked if she could do a few favors for him.

* * *

><p>The bottle Garrus had stashed in the main battery along with his nearly empty box of chocolates was weighing heavily on his mind. He was not quite sure exactly how or when he should approach Shepard about… <em>Spirits this would be easier if I had just watched those damn vids I found the other night.<em> Garrus thought a walk around the ship would help clear his mind on how he should proceed with Shepard but it was proving to be unproductive. Joker had a few good jokes as always and he pointly slid past Mordin's office and tried not to make eye contact with Kelly. A little chat with Tali was comforting as always. She was quite chatty for a Quarian and Garrus always thought she was nice but a little too smart for her age.

Garrus had been so deep in thought he did not even see Thane as he rounded the corner and ended up face to face with the Drell. "Oh, sorry, Thane! I didn't see you."

Luckily Thane was a master at moving quickly at the very last second and had dodged any potential hazards. "It's quite alright. You ok? You seem a little distracted."

"Hmm… Always."

"Can I be of any assistance?" _Not really…_

"Er, it's a bit… personal…" He really wanted to be alone with his thoughts about Shepard. It was a subject he really did not want to share with anyone. Particularly Thane.

"Lady problems?" Garrus was not quite sure about the Drell really. He seemed to mean well, but sometimes his questions made him feel a bit uncomfortable. _Jealous? _He ignored the little thought in his head.

"I wouldn't say problems exactly. But, hey, you were married weren't you, Thane?" He thought he had heard him talking about it once.

"Yes I was. Kolyat is the only thing I have left of her."

"Hmm. I take it that you miss her then." Thane grew silent and his eyes drifted off to the side. _Oh, oops. I hope I didn't say something to upset him._ Even with his slight uneasiness about him, Garrus did not want there to be any bad blood between any of them. "I'm sorry. I hope I didn't…" Thane shook his head and seemed to have snapped out of his trance.

"No, not at all. I was just remembering something." Strangely a smile crossed over his solemn face. "Actually, thank you." _Say what?_ "Some things should never be forgotten. Sometime you shouldn't wait to say or do certain things either." Thane gave him a knowing look and bowed his head at him. "Please pardon me. Shepard gave me leave to visit my son one last time and I would regret it if I missed him."

_Err… What just happened? _Garrus stepped aside and watched Thane call the elevator before he turned back toward the main battery. _"Sometimes you shouldn't wait to say or do certain things."_ He was right, some things you should not wait to say or do. Garrus clicked on his terminal and opened up a message to Shepard. _"Your room tonight?"_

* * *

><p>Shepard loved to do a little extra shopping after a long day of running around on the whims of her superiors. Her weakness for fashion was perhaps the only thing that her parents were not able to get out of her system before they sent her off to the academy on Earth. Something about different clothing made her feel like she had control over something in her life. Clothing could set certain moods and change the way people think. A beep from her omni-tool jolted her out of her thoughts and she let go of the beautiful dress she had been eyeing.<p>

It was a message from Garrus. "_Your room tonight?"_

She smiled and pulled the dress off the rack again and placed it next to her body as she glanced in the mirror. With a few quick clicks she replied and headed off to check out. _"Sounds good."_

* * *

><p>Shepard straightened her dress for the tenth time since she had put it on. <em>Quit it, you look fine!<em> She tried to tell herself that it did not matter what she wore, it was just drinks. _Yeah, just drinks with the man you invited up to your room to test your flexibility. _Her nerves were getting the better of her and she was over compensating by checking and rechecking everything. Glasses were set on the table, soft classic human music in the background, and the vigorous beauty check she kept giving herself.

The door gave a beep and she raced towards it, stopping for a second to flatten the dress again and pull her long ponytail end over her shoulder to drape down her collarbone. _No second checks now!_ A tap at the controls and the door hissed open to reveal Garrus standing there in his civics clothing. She smiled widely at him.

"Garrus!"

* * *

><p>The bottle felt slightly too heavy to Garrus as he tried to slip past the kitchen unnoticed. It was a futile attempt but at least most of the crew was seemingly polite about it. <em>Kind of hard not to notice a Turian walking toward the elevator in civs especially when said Turian is caring a bottle of wine. <em>It was starting to become hard to focus on one thing and his visor kept twisting trying to find a clear target. He just hoped that he could get to Shepard's room incident free.

The elevator door opened and a mischievous grin etched itself across Jack's face. "Heeey there stud. Off to grease the axels tonight?" _Oh dear Spirits why?_ Jack's laughter was cut short as Tali kicked her hard in her shin. "Fuck, man. What the hell was that for?" Without a word Tali dragged Jack by her tattooed arm and led her out of the elevator. _Thank you, Tali. I owe you one._ Alone in the elevator at last he knew that regardless of Tali's actions there would be much gossip in the mess hall tonight. _Especially with Jack's foul mouth…_

He tried not to look too flustered as he waited patiently before hitting the call button on Shepard's door. Eternity seemed to pass by before the door finally slid open. And when it did, Garrus nearly dropped the bottle of wine.

"Garrus!"

All he could do is stare at her. Her athletically fit body was covered with the most form fitted, red dress he had ever seen. It melted into her skin and had become one with her generous curves. She had slicked her hair back into an elegantly placed ponytail that she had draped over her collarbone. He stood for a moment to drink in the intoxicating sight of her.

Previous thoughts of what he body looked underneath her clothing started to flood back into his mind. Even thought that was ultimately what they had agreed this would be he was starting to want it to be more than that. Sure, getting a little tipsy and getting rid of a little tension is fun but there was something to be said about sharing something like that with a woman like Shepard. Finally Garrus was able to blink and he held up the bottle.

"Hey… I brought wine." Was the only thing he could think to say.

Shepard smiled. "That you have." She ushered him in and took the wine from his hand.

The sight of her cabin was not what he had expected. Her desk was littered with data pads, along with a few pictures placed randomly about and a hamster cage. The large fish tank glowed dimly and shadows danced on the walls as the colorful fish swam gracefully through the water. Shepard also had a dozen or so ship models in a large glass case that were quite detailed. Garrus followed her down towards the couch and noticed that she had already had some light toned music playing. _That's good, because my selection would have probably made her think I was planning a bad drunken date scenario._

"Are you going to just stand there and act like a little school boy or are you going to join me?" He did not even notice that she had poured the glasses and was sitting waiting on him.

"Oh, uh, sorry. Your cabin is just not what I expected." Garrus eased up next to her and joined her on the couch.

"Is that so?" She asked as she cradled her drink in her delicate looking hands before setting it down and looking up at him with her bright eyes.

"Y-yeah…" He just could not figure out what to say.

Shepard smiled at him and placed a hand over his. "If I am making you uncomfortable, just say so."

He shook his head quickly. "N-no. You will never make me feel uncomfortable, Shepard. Hell, I'm just nervous that's all. I've never been with… with…"

"A human?" She cocked her head to the side as if to try to find a way to make him feel more relaxed.

"It's not that. I've never been with someone I really cared about." There he had finally said it. _Yes, I Garrus Vakarian care a great deal about you, Commander Shepard._ "I… just don't want to mess anything up between us. You are the only friend I have left in this messed up galaxy and I just want something to go right for once. I…"

Shepard was suddenly very close to him and one of her hands was on his face, tracing the scars he found so offensive. His heart felt like it had skipped a beat and was now in overdrive. Her hands were softer than he remembered and they made the skin beneath his plates tingle with excitement. She was so close to him he could see her chest rise and fall with each breath she took and smell the fresh ocean like scent wave off her body. His visor focused in on her and he could see her heart rate elevate regularly.

Slowly she removed her hand from his face and let his hands find hers. Shepard tugged on his gloves and he let her remove them without any resistance. _Like I could really move if I wanted to right now._ Blunt talons touched her skin and his mind turned blind to anything else. There were no real words to explain how smooth it felt to him. Tiny fingers played with his large ones caressing his talons and rough skin. The first time he had seen them he had laughed and told her she had too many fingers, but now, he thought they were beyond wondrous. He played back with his hands, feeling every tiny finger in between his.

Slowly he got bolder and lightly traveled his hands up her bare arms, keeping in mind that he could easily pierce through her skin if he was not careful. She shivered and her heart rate and breathing increased drastically. He reached up and pulled on the ties holding her hair up to let it down and watched as her hair flowed through his fingers like water. He stared at it for a long time, running his talons threw it over and over. The same strange softness graced his hands and it felt like he was handling fine silk.

"Do you like it?" Her voice sounded a little strained and possibly frightened.

Garrus nodded slowly and rested his forehead on hers. "Yes. I guess you could say that your hair is the closest thing to fringe you humans have." _I hope that doesn't sound offensive._ She awarded him with a little giggle. He left one hand run through her dark, soft hair and pulled her closer with the other. _Spirits help me I want her._ The smell of her skin was slightly salty mixed with citrus and he could not get enough of it. It was enticing enough to want to taste it.

The next thing he knew she was pressing her lips on his mandible softly and intently. Frantically he tried to remember what the booklet had called it. _A kiss… Oh… that does feel good._ Her lips caressed the soft spots left by his injury and made them feel warm. A rumble rose in his chest and he felt his plates start to shift. After a few moments, Shepard started licking and nibbling lightly on his mandibles and neck, which cause a whole new sensation to run through him. He was not sure what it was, but he knew it felt good.

Her tongue wrapped around his mandibles carefully and left a light wet feeling to them that he wanted to taste. Garrus tightened his grip on her and let his talons contract slightly into her sides and back. Dreams had nothing on this and if he had only knew he would have done something about it a long time ago. As suddenly as she had started, she had stopped and pulled away from him.

"Garrus?" _Dear Spirits, don't stop!_

"Y-yes?"

She was biting her lip slightly. "Do you think we can remove your visor?"

"Um…" He was a little confused. _Why would it matter?_ But if Shepard wanted to see him without it, it should not really matter why. "Yeah, sure."

Shepard slowly ran her fingers along the cold metal and found the release on his visor. He heard a click right before the interface turned dark and she carefully removed it and set it gently on the table. Garrus blinked a few times as his eyes adjusted to not having his visor on. That was when he noticed that he was actually really looking at her for the first time. He almost gasped out loud and found himself holding his breathe. _Oh my… She is beautiful._ Not that he ever thought she was ugly by any standards, attractive he would have said before, but this was completely different.

Garrus flared his mandibles at her as she smiled softly at him before returning to her pervious actions and started to work her way down his neck. _Mmmm…_ He lowered his head and tried to breathe softly in one of her ears as he had read in on of the booklets. Shepard shivered slightly in response and started to busy her hands along his chest and crawled down to try and find the hem of his shirt. After a few fumbling moments they had successfully removed his shirt and Shepard licked her lips and stared deeply into his eyes. He could see a fiery need in them he had never seen before.

Shepard pulled away from him, stood up and tugged at her dress, He watched in amazement as it slowly revealed her half naked body and fell to the ground like a pool of blood. Garrus took her up in his arms as she climbed into his lap, pressing her body up against his bare chest and he ran his talons carefully down her soft skin. "Garrus," She whispered quietly. "I really do want you." He hugged her closer in response; it was what he wanted to hear more than anything else.

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't want you too, Shepard." Passionately, Shepard pressed her lips to his mouth and he tried to apply the same pressure back with his hard mouth. _Hmm, that wasn't too difficult._ He explored her mouth with his, applying more pressure when she offered it to him. The softness of her skin was everywhere and Garrus touched every part of it he could reach. He found a small spot at the bottom of her spine that made her shiver and her flat stomach went on forever until he found her high proud breast.

Finally he lifted her up and led her closer to the bed. He found it difficult to let go of her and there was more fumbling as they both tried to remove each other's remaining clothing resulting in Garrus accidentally cutting through the straps of her undergarments. _Shit._ "S-sorry!"

Shepard giggled at him. "It's ok," She brushed her tiny flat teeth against a soft spot on his neck. "I have plenty more." With that, Garrus did not waste another second and ripped the remaining clothing right off her body. Shepard gasped slightly and gave him a mischievous grin. Picking her up, he carried her to her bed and laid her down in it and removed the last bit of clothing he had on; exposing himself fully to her.

Garrus stood there hoping she would not find anything wrong with how different he was and glanced down at her stark nakedness below him. He certainly did not find anything wrong with her. She could not look more appealing to him more than ever. The pale soft skin and her long dark hair was very different from what he was used to but he was willing to try anything if it meant being with her. It would not matter if it never happened again, the image of her body laying there ready for him would forever be etched into his mind.

Shepard held herself up with her elbows slowly evaluating him with her eyes smiling the whole time. "Mmmm… what are you waiting for, my knight?" Her voice was as sweet as the chocolate she had given him those few weeks back.

He flared his mandibles at her and acted like he was inspecting a new prototype weapon. "Oh, you know me. I like savoring the last shot before popping the heat sink." Time suddenly felt like it had stopped. _Dear Spirits, I didn't just say that… Not now._ Shepard's face was twisting around as she tried not to laugh at him. Instead she pushed herself up and reached out for him. He let her pull him down on top of her as her hands explored his hard body. Slowly, Garrus lowered his head and opened his mouth to lick the top of her breast like he had read. The skin tightened at his touch and Shepard moaned and her grip on his cowl tightened.

Her grip tightened even more and she pulled him even closer to her. Through their pressed bodies he could feel her heart beat pounding and her breathing was fast. She shifted beneath him rubbing her soft skin against him with great intent. Garrus positioned himself better and finally found and entered her. They both gasped and Garrus felt her tight, wet body wrapped around. It had never felt like this before and he found himself even more exciting than he thought it would. Shepard arched her body into his and moved in ways he never thought were possible. She fondled at his fringe and moaned when he drove into her. And after a while there was only the need for the pleasure that awaited them both at the end.

Despite her soft body she whispered for him to stop being so gentle with her. He still did not want to hurt her but also did not want to disappoint her either. Her silky skin moved with him like it knew what he wanted and there was nothing stopping him from taking it. At this point Shepard would probably let him too but he wanted to save her the unforgiving after effects if he did.

It seemed like it would never end until all Garrus could see was stars in his vision and the way Shepard's body arched into his and tightened around him was like nothing he had felt before. He vaguely heard her moan his name passionately as she grabbed a hold of his fringe. Garrus let out his own moan and buried his face into her neck as he drove into her wildly; perhaps a little harder than he meant to but he could not help himself at that point.

When he could finally see and feel the rest of the world again, he was panting for air and Shepard was sprawled out beneath him trying to catch her breath as well. Once he had regained the use of his body, he rolled off to lie next to her. For quite some time the only sound in the room was their staggered breathing and the hum of the fish tank. Garrus was not even sure what time it was and Shepard did not even seem to want to move either.

However, he did not want to overstay his welcome. She had, of course, asked him up there initially to blow off some steam together to ease their nerves. Granted she had told him that she wanted him, but it could be any number of reasons why. There was no way of knowing how she truly felt about him without asking. He pushed himself up and started to leave the bed. Shepard must have been more aware than he thought and a soft hand was suddenly gripping his strongly. Garrus looked back at her and saw a strange look in her eyes.

"Please stay, Garrus." It would not matter how loud she had said that to him, it was the only sound he cared to hear and it caused his heart to tighten. He nodded his head slowly at her before joining her back in bed.

"I didn't know if you wanted me too." He said truthfully.

Shepard curled up into his arms and let her fingers explore his chest. "You're not the only one who has never been with someone they really cared about." Garrus pulled her in as tightly as he dared. Her breathing slowed and he carefully pulled her sheets over her so that she would not get cold. It did not matter how long she slept, he was going to stay there until he knew he was not dreaming himself.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I don't get why Mordin never says anything to you after the fact. Also, I personally never liked physicals... And of course if you played LOSB you could read the transcript between Garrus and Solana. I can't find anywhere who exactly that is, but seeing as it sounds feminine I would say it is his sister. Then there is Legion, I love the poor little Geth and have neglected him thus far. That needs to end. lol. Then of course, Garrus may be good at acting normal but we all know he has still got to be nervous. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

Garrus ran a talon mindlessly along the torn tissue of his face. The skin had finally healed enough that he was not afraid to touch it anymore. It still bothered him and he felt the twinge of slight pain that it would never be whole again. The scars were finally starting to form and the chipped plates felt odd at his touch. _At least they don't turn Shepard away. _Sometimes he could feel her soft lips on the still soft spots that still itched from time to time.

Sighing deeply, he turned his attention back to the terminal. It was slightly difficult to make out the words in the dark even on the lighted screen. Shepard was still asleep and Garrus did not want to wake her and had the terminal light at only half strength. "_Damn it, Garrus, you haven't even bothered to sync up for video chat since you lost that damn job. If you're so ashamed to look me in the eye, then why are we even talking?"_ Garrus sighed again. Maybe he was ashamed. Not that he had lost a job but because of the scars. The bandage was still in place and it was only started to become slightly bearable because of Shepard. _I am really sorry Sol._

The screen blurred out of view as he strained to think straight. "Come back to bed, Garrus." He tensed slightly before slacking into Shepard as she wrapped her long soft arms around him from behind.

"Sorry, Shepard. I was trying not to wake you." He muzzled his nose into her neck and let her hair fall into his face.

Shepard giggled softly and kissed him lightly. "You know eventually you are going to have to learn to stop calling me Shepard."

Garrus chuckled back at her. "Maybe one day, Lexi." Her name sounded odd coming out of his mouth. _Maybe one day it won't._

"What are you reading?" Shepard asked curiously.

"I… My mother is sick and my father and sister are taking her off world to try some experimental treatments." He could never lie to her, even if he tried.

"Oh…" Her voice told him she would have never asked if she had known. "I'm sorry, Garrus. How is it looking?"

He let out a long breath. "Not so good. The treatments are… expensive… I wish I could help them." He really did want to but he just could not figure out how. Obviously he could not pay for it in his current situation.

"Maybe we can." Shepard let go of him and slid into his lap. He could feel the heat from her body through the light robe soak into him slowly.

"We?" Garrus was surprised at her words.

"Yes."

"But…" She swirled her upper half toward him and gave him a very stern look interrupting him in mid sentence.

"Garrus, I care for you. But family is important. Not all of us have all of our family left and the way the galaxy is right now, it is all some of us have left." He saw a slight twinge on her face and her eyes looked more watery than normal. Finally he nodded as he let her read his messages.

"If you don't mind me asking. Where is your family?" He hoped that his curiosity would not hit a sour note.

She sighed as she clicked on a few pages in search of something. "My mother is the captain of the SSV Orizaba now and my father… He died years ago when his ship crash-landed on a desert planet. They weren't able to find them for months and by then, they were too late." Her eyes looked off to the side for a moment in deep thought.

"Ah. I'm sorry, Shepard." Garrus wrapped his arms around her waist. He was genuinely sorry. He did not want to think about loosing his mother either. _Family is important even when they don't always approve of what you do, or who you are with._

"I thought I told you that you should call me by my first name." He could sense her smiling again. "Ok, now were are they taking your mother?"

Garrus typed in the name of the facility for her and watched as she checked a few more things before closing the terminal. "I'm glad we could do something. And I wish I could have talked you out of paying for such a thing." He was slightly ashamed to let Shepard pay for something he should have done.

She smiled and moved his head to look into her eyes. "I didn't pay for anything. I simply donated some funds to a researcher's facility on Helos."

He gave her a confused look. "Uh…" He was not quite sure what the purpose of that was.

Shepard's grin widened. "Just wait. You will see why soon. Now, come to bed. That's an order." She proceeded to pull him out of the chair.

"Yes, Commander." Garrus answered as seriously as he could. Shepard chuckled at him and led him back to her bed.

* * *

><p>Shepard checked to make sure it was early enough that nobody else would bother her, but late enough that Mordin would be up before making a quick dash for the doctor's door. She was not really concerned about anyone seeing her going to talk to Mordin, she just did not want people to gossip about why.<p>

"Good morning, Commander! Up earlier than normal." It did not matter what time of day the Salarian was always cheerfully.

"Do you have a minute?" She could not figure out why she was whispering.

"Ah. Night went well I see." Mordin smiled happily at her.

Shepard coughed uncomfortably. "Um, I guess you can say that." Mordin continued to smile at her as she scratched a particular itchy spot on her arm. "I… It's just that my skin has been a little itchier than normal lately. I thought you could possibly prescribe something?"

"Yes, of course! I did warn of chaffing, you did not… ingest?"

She shook her head wildly. "Oh no! It's just… After a few… Well I think I might…" She did not know how to put it exactly.

Mordin nodded and busied himself with something on his screen. "More than one night I see." Her face turned red and her cheeks started to burn. "Minor allergic reacting to different amino-acids quite normal. Good to see no other side effects are present. No chaffing?"

Shepard's face grew hotter by the minute. "N-no Mordin. Nothing like that."

He breathed in deeply making a slight hissing noise like he always did. "Sending a prescription to your room to help with reaction outbreaks. Should be fine without it normally. Do suggest seeing Dr. Chakwas for physical to follow up."

_Yeah, I guess that is logical._ Mordin stood there staring at her with a little more force than normal. "You mean now?"

"No better time when having reaction." He turned his attention back to his screen and clicked it franticly.

"Thank you, Mordin." She was not sure if she should thank him, she hated physicals.

"Any time, Commander." Shepard left him to his work and faintly heard him mumbling something about finding "scale-itch" on the hull and something else she could not really understand.

She headed over and looked a bit longingly at the kitchen as she entered the med bay. Secretly she wished that Dr. Chakwas was not there.

"Hello, Shepard! Dr. Mordin said you would be coming by." _Of course he did._

"Yeah. Did he tell you why?" She hoped Mordin had spared the major details with her.

"Only a little. He said that you should have a full physical. You may have had an allergic reaction to something?" Dr. Chakwas sounded slightly confused.

"More like someone." Shepard thought she had mumbled it quietly enough in a menacingly tone towards the other doctor.

"Ah." Dr. Chakwas' voice was happier than she would have expected. "The rumors are right then."

Shepard snapped her head at her in surprise. "What?"

"I'm glad you have found someone who makes you happy. You have worried me that you might not after you turned away Alenko."

Shepard groaned as she set herself up for her examination. _How is it that everyone can find out my entire love life without me saying a damn word? Can't I have anything to myself these days?_ "Wait… how did you know about Kaidan? The only person I have ever told that to was…" She really did not want to tell her about what she told Garrus.

Dr. Chakwas check her equipment. "Oh, it's not that hard when you spend most of the time across the hall from the poor fellow watching his sad face after you leave and continue on your way to talk to your other crewmates."

Shepard sighed. "Nothing passes by you, doc."

After a few scans and some skin samples, much to Shepard's demise, Dr. Chakwas finally gave her leave. "That's it. You are going to be perfectly fine. Dr. Mordin is right; you have just a very minor, at best, reaction towards dextro-amino acids. Not saying you should go ingesting any Turian cuisine to be bold, but regulated you and Garrus should have no major problems."

"Thanks, Dr. Chakwas." _Yeah, at least you didn't mention anything about endogenous zone ideas or where not to lick areas on a Turian._

"I'm happy for you two." They shared a smile together quietly.

"Well, I am happy so I guess that is a good thing."

Dr. Chakwas nodded and returned back to her previous work. "I will be here if you need anything."

* * *

><p>"I don't care if it can sing and dance while it cooks a five course meal out of thin air. I don't like it." Tali was being a bit more on nerve then normal since Shepard had decided to bring back and reactivate the Geth terminal but this was starting to get a little old. "If we hadn't gone after the 'heretics' like it had asked, the crew would still be here!"<p>

Shepard pinched her nose between her fingers hoping that a headache would not start. There was only so much more she could take. Even she had a breaking point and she did not want to find it. "Tali, everyone is on edge. There is no way that this is Legion's fault. It is more mine than anyone else's and we _are_ going after them."

Tali shook her head and mumbled something she did not quite understand. Shepard took the Quarian up in her arms and hugged her like a little sister would. "It's ok. I understand that it is hard to trust someone or something after all that time of hurt and fighting." She could not see Tali's face behind her mask but she had the distinct feeling that she was crying. "No one could have predicted that they would come for the crew. EDI didn't find anything wrong until the last second and Legion… Well to be honest it has had plenty of opportunities to harm us if it wanted to. I really don't think it is like the other Geth we have encountered."

Sighing heavily, Tali shook off her agitation. "You're right Shepard. I can't blame anyone on something that nobody had control over. I'm… just frustrated. After all these years and the Geth finally want to talk to us? It is bizarre in it's own way! I'm not sure what to do."

"Sometimes you just have to take it a step at a time. But right now, we need to focus on getting everyone back." Shepard was really trying not to let it get to her as well. She was their Commander. She was supposed to protect them. "We can all deal with things once we know the Collectors have been stopped. I promise."

"Thank you, Shepard." Tali nodded at her and walked towards the elevator to head back to the engine room.

Shepard took in a few deep breaths and tried to keep herself calm. There was no use to loose it now right before the big battle. "EDI, is the IFF online yet?"

The blue orb popped up in front of her. "Yes. Jeff as also managed to correct manual controls as well."

"Good. Set a course to the Omega 4 relay. Inform the rest of the crew that we hit the Collector base first thing in the morning." She did not even wait for a reply and headed up to her cabin. _Don't know how much sleep I will get though._

* * *

><p>Garrus did not even bother knocking at the door to Shepard's cabin. Even though his research on human customs showed that it was common between two mating humans to not to knock before entering one's private quarters he knew that Shepard needed someone with her and that she would not open the door regardless of who was on the other side. <em>I guess it just makes it easier on my side and even if she had locked it, I would have hacked it myself.<em> It would probably been easier to just ask EDI to open the door. At this point, the AI would have been happy to do so.

He found her on the couch in thin clothing hugging her legs and staring at the fish tank. "I don't think fish blink, Shepard." Garrus half joked as he sat next to her and pulled her into his arms.

Shepard let herself fall into his body and rested her head on his chest. He slowly caressed her slightly wet hair with his bare talons and let her ease herself into a calm state. "I just don't know what to do, Garrus. I shouldn't be afraid, but I am."

Garrus muzzled his face into her hair and did his best to kiss the crown of her head. "You've done the best anyone could, Lexi."

She finally let out the first chuckle since they had come back. _That's a good sign._ "You finally decided to call me by my first name?"

"Hmm… I'm still trying it out." He tried to act aloof. "But I'd say that you have built up a good deal of stress. Do you need help relieving some of that, Commander?"

A smile broke across her face and Garrus flared his mandibles at her. "I don't think you would be up to sparring with me, officer."

Garrus huffed. "Nah, I don't think we have enough time for anything but a tiebreaker."

"Oh, is that so?" Shepard raised an eyebrow at him and started tugging at his clothing as he started to lightly growl and nip at her playfully.

The idea of being with Shepard still made him a little nervous. He did not want to accidentally hurt her or scare her off with being a little rough. Granted she had not minded the few times he had visited her and it seemed each time was a little easier for both of them. Her body was still a wonder to him and he was not sure how all of it worked but it felt good to him and from her reactions it must feel good to her. Those few nights were beginning to fill in the gaps he had built up from the past two years and he was starting to wonder if he could ever be without these memories of her. _I'm not sure how I deserve this._ Tonight he was going to savor every second he had with her. Tonight, he was going to make sure that if it was their last, she would know that he planed on not leaving her alone. He did not care who saw them leaving her cabin together in the morning. _Tonight is about us._


	7. Chapter 7

****A/N: Garrus is starting to act more Garrus like finally. Needed some more on the synthetic side of the crew too. Thought I'd spice it up and go with Joker's view of things. And of course some sweet Liara talk with Garrus. Now if only the two of them would stop being so frightened to tell each other how they feel we would all be happy! ;) Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

It had felt good to tell Joker to loose the connection to the Illusive Man all together. Just as much as it felt good to wash the grime from her body that she had picked up from the Collector's base. Even with scrubbing herself twice, Shepard still did not feel completely clean but she did not think her skin could take anymore.

_Now things should get better without that swine in the way. _She wrapped herself in nothing but a robe and wandered back into her cabin. Her terminal blinked with a new message. Shepard clicked it on and skimmed over the contents. _Huh, at least they sent one last thing that could be remotely useful._

"Joker," She hit the com button to reach her pilot. "Set a course to Illium."

"Yes, ma'am!" He sounded ecstatic to be on the move to put themselves further away from their previous position. Shepard giggled to herself. She was going to have to spend more time with her crew. They were like family now and she wanted them to know that. Her door hissed open breaking into her thoughts.

"Oh, hey, Garrus." She started to smile and turn towards him.

Garrus did not bother with any words. He simply walked straight towards her and picked her up with his powerful arms, holding her tightly against his chest. His warm breath tickled her neck as he buried his face into her hair and she thought she heard a low rumbling sound coming from deep inside his chest. "Don't you ever scare me like that again."

Shepard blinked at him confused. "Excuse me?"

Slowly, he removed his face from her neck and looked straight into her eyes with his piercing blue ones. "You died once, and I am not going to let you do that again."

A smile formed on her lips and her heart skipped a beat. "Don't worry. I don't plan on it."

"Good." Garrus purred at her.

His mandibles flared at her and he pressed his hard mouth to her lips and kissed her as hard as he dared. She answered his passion with her own and ran her fingers along his neck and up his fringe. The hard plates still felt oddly warm to her as she scraped her nails softly down his fringe. Garrus moaned at her touch and she felt her flesh pucker up at the sound.

She busied her hands in trying to remove his armor from him as he bent his head down and started licking her neck carefully but full of intent. Slowly but surly she removed the pieces she had seen him put on many times before and let them litter the floor of her cabin. Garrus pulled back the front of her robe to expose her chest and started traveling down her collarbone. Over time she had had gotten used to the roughness of his tongue and the light flicks to her skin tickled her more than anything. Garrus lightly ran his talons down her body, sending shivers through her spine as she let him peal back her clothing to give herself to him.

A moan escaped her lips as he nipped gently at her and picked her up to take her to the bed. Shepard enjoyed exploring his foreign body. It was different yet familiar at the same time. Their species was more similar than she had thought when it came down to the basics. But she had yet to explore it all. Every time was different; there was so much more they had not even tried yet either. Garrus laid her down and removed his visor before joining her to fulfill their need for each other.

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><p>For the first time Garrus actually understood his feelings clearly. After years of one-nights and gun fights, he wanted it all to just be over with. Shepard had shown him a world that did not hurt anymore, a world that he wanted to be a part of. It had been terrifying to watch her slip down away from him. He was not sure if he had yelled and if he did, he did not know what he had said. Even so, it was highly unlikely anyone was paying attention to what was being said. His blood had pumped so hard that the only sound he could hear was his heart. Armor scraped against metal as he reached out for her. Nothing had been more frightening then in those few seconds of uncertainty. He had to resist the urge to hold her against his own body with no intention of letting go right then and there in front of everyone.<p>

Now he was just glad to be back on the Normandy with her safe and sound in his arms. He sighed and ran a talon down her body to her thigh. The first time he had thought that scars did not bother her because she was used to them. She was no stranger to them. He had remembered seeing one once that ran the length of her arm over two years ago while they were suiting up for a mission. Now there was only her smooth alabaster skin and he was not sure what to think anymore.

There were a few spots that were still slightly cracked from when Cerberus had rebuilt her and her cybernetics had yet to fully healed them, but eventually they would disappear. Once Garrus thought he had heard Dr. Chakwas tell her that there was research available to increase the rate of regeneration in her cells but Shepard had politely turned it down. _Maybe it was for my sake._ Shepard stirred beneath his touch and kissed her neck softly hoping that he had not disturbed her.

"Mmm…" Shepard mumbled softly. "Garrus?"

"Yes."

"What are you thinking about?" Her eyes were still closed so he was not sure if she really was awake. He had heard about humans sometimes talking in their sleep.

"Uh… nothing really important. Is there something on your mind?" He did not really want to tell her he was thinking about his scars. They had finally healed enough that he was not worried that they would break back open, but some of them still bothered him.

Shepard rolled gracefully in his arms to look at him. She opened her eyes and stared at him for a moment. Eventually her eyes traveled toward the scars that covered his right shoulder and part of his upper chest. With a careful hand she touched them, tracing them with her fingers slowly. Garrus tried not to pull away from her, but the look on his face gave him away. His pride had been easier to heal. These scars were more intimate that those on his face.

"I'm sorry." She whispered to him.

"For what?" The confusion in his voice was genuine.

"For these." _Oh, great. I hope she doesn't blame herself for letting me get these. I was acting foolish at the time._

"It's alright, Lexi."

The look on her face told him a different story. "I know you have seen mine." She must have noticed that he had been running his talons on the very spot that she used to have them and the few scared cracks that she had left.

"Y-yeah. Mine will heal too."

"But mine will disappear." There was an odd hurt in her voice.

Garrus pulled her close. "Why would that matter? You look beautiful."

"I would rather have them."

He blinked awkwardly at her. "What, why? I would give a whole hell of a lot just to have mine gone. "

"Because," She raised her head to look at him again, "They are a reminder to those things that make us who we are. Without them, we are just merely empty shells."

"Hmm." He never thought of it that way. "Well, it does not matter what scars I may get, I will follow you into hell and back."

"Me too." Shepard barely whispered back. _Well, maybe having scars isn't always a bad thing. And eventually, they will heal._

* * *

><p>Joker shook his head again. "For the last time EDI, I'm not calling the Commander. She is fine."<p>

"It has been over two hours since our arrival at Illium, Jeff." EDI's voice droned over him like a mother hen and he turned his chair to look at her blue orb next to him.

"Well, some of us pay attention to the cams and when you see a certain Turian waltzing his way up the elevator to the Commander's cabin you just don't ask questions and you let things be." He tried to give the AI the best stern look he could. While he was glad that the pesky little piece of machinery was finally acting less like a mechanical robot she still did not understand certain concepts. _Especially those pertaining to privacy, I swear I need to add another encryption on my extranet tabs._

"EDI, what is the purpose of love?" Legion popped into their conversation out of nowhere.

"Shit, who said anything about love?" Joker swirled back to the flight controls.

"Love has many definitions but the most used description of love is the profound tender or passionate affection for another. Its purpose eludes me."

Joker snorted and rolled his eyes. "Yeah it sure would." He said to himself.

"Ah. Is it safe to assume Shepard-Commander and Officer-Vakarian are in love?" _Dear God Geth ask the weirdest questions!_

"Whoa there buddy, I wouldn't go around asking that without know all the facts."

Legion twitched his head to the side and raised its eye flaps in curiosity. "From what I have gathered from the rest of the crew do they not have a passionate affection for one another?"

"I would have to conclude the same." EDI chimed in.

"Geeze, being out numbered by synthetics. Look, there is more that goes into love when it is concerning organics. It's complicated. Not something you can analyze like a test subject. Besides, nobody has been talking about love between them. There are many other reasons for their… well…" _Uhg, how does one explain sex to synthetics?_

"It is unlikely that Shepard and Officer Vakarian could reproduce an offspring, Jeff. The only other conclusion would be love."

"There is more than one reason… Look, forget it. Just don't talk about that kind of stuff in front of them." Joker rubbed his forehead with his hand.

"Why?" Legion asked curiously.

"I… I don't think they really want to think about that right now. Besides it is a bit more personal than your average question." He faintly heard a flagging like voice in the distance. "You see, EDI. I told you that they were fine."

"Hey Joker. EDI, Legion." Shepard greeted them all as Garrus readied the hatch for their departure to Illium.

"Hey, Commander." Joker tried to act as normal as possible.

"Looks like you guys were having a pretty deep conversation."

"Y-yeah you could say that." He glanced quickly at EDI.

"I hope you were playing nice. What were you discussing?"

Legion twitched his eye flaps and EDI blue field vibrated oddly. "Lov…"

"Nothing really to important, Commander. Just pretty much discussing the difference between certain concepts between organics and synthetics." Joker cut off Legion as quickly as he could. He was not sure if he had done so quickly enough but he heard Garrus's hand slip on the panel to the hatch and an odd clanking noise that followed.

"Err… right." Shepard crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him. He could tell that he had not fully convinced her but luckily she was already running behind schedule and did not care to dig further. "Like I said, play nice. We will be back soon."

* * *

><p>Nobody but Shepard ever really visited Garrus in the main battery anymore so the sound of the door chime made Garrus jump involuntarily. "Yes?"<p>

The doors hissed open and Liara walked in. "Hello, Garrus."

He visibly relaxed and closed out his terminal to give an old friend his full attention. "Ah, it is good to see that you finally decided to visit the Normandy, Liara."

Liara smiled and walked around the room, examining his workspace. "I'm quite glad that I took Lexi's advice. It has been good to see many old faces." Her smile dropped slightly as she turned and looked at him. "I-I'm sorry about what I said the other day when we were going up against the Shadow Broker. I shouldn't have let my personal feeling get away with my judgment of my friends."

Garrus titled his head to the side. He remembered the embarrassing moment of realization that there might be more people who knew about him and Shepard than he liked. _"And now Garrus is doing more than calibrating the Normandy's weapons!"_ She had sounded a bit angry and hurt. "It's alright Liara. Things haven't really been that easy lately for any of us."

She shook her head. "No, I was jealous that you two were there together and how you two look at each other. I… I've lost so much and those I have even started to care about."

"Feron?" Garrus asked curiously. Liara nodded silently and he could see tears starting to form.

"It wasn't right of me to be so upset with you two. Shepard is a good friend and I want her to be happy."

Garrus looked off to the side. "Me too."

"So, you do care for her." A small smile twitched across her lips.

"Y-yeah." _More than I would like to admit._

Liara giggled a little. "Don't worry, I won't tell her how much."

If Turians could blush he had a feeling his face would be as red as Human blood. "Thanks. I'm just not sure how…" His voice trailed off slightly.

"It's ok." Liara placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I know you will find a way someday."

Garrus nodded. "Glad you came by."

"I will see you later, Garrus."

With Liara gone, Garrus opened up his terminal again. Human culture was very… complicated. Researching Human matting rituals was turning out to be quite difficult. There was also not really anyone he could ask about such things either. _And all this stuff on gift giving as a way of courting one another is just plain weird. _With Turians, one just came out and said it normally. Acting possessive was common as well between relationships that had a possibility of turning into a mating pair. He just was not sure how to express his feelings towards Shepard. Garrus sighed and clicked through a few more pages before one old looking Human custom caught his eye. _Now this, this I can do._


	8. Chapter 8

A/n: A few references to Arrival and a little bit in pre-ME3. So if you haven't gotten to ME3 yet after this chapter it will start going into that part of the timeline, beware! I wanted to give their relationship a slightly different twist to side with a more romantic feeling to it. I hope I captured that with Shepard's letters. Also, you have got to admit that even though Garrus goes to his father about the Reapers and all he had to have noticed how Garrus talks about Shepard. Even if he might have never mentioned that he feels for her in that kind of a way, parents (especially) just have a way of knowing. Enjoy!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

"I wish you would let me go with you." Garrus fidgeted his hands around each other. He was extremely uncomfortable with letting her go alone to a Batarian prison in a very remote system. _I don't like it. Especially since she keeps telling me that it is classified and can't tell me what she is doing._

"I know." Shepard sighed and scooted closer to him on the couch. "Hackett was very adamant on me going alone."

"That's what worries me." He looked down at her and pulled her closer. "You won't be in contact with the Normandy and if something were to happen…" His voice choked up a little and there was a lump her could not swallow.

"Nothing is going to happen to me." She tried to reassure him and take hold of his hands to stop him from wearing out his gloves.

It was getting easier to let her take hold of him for long periods of time without the feeling that he was going to die in her arms. He was even getting used to her softer body and wanted to hold her more often. _For an odd Human custom, cuddling is actually very comforting._ He could spend hours with her laid out in his arms, rubbing his hands up and down her smooth skin and running his talons through her hair. Shepard closed her eyes and snuggled in closer to him. Garrus kissed the top of her head. _All I know is you better come back to me._

* * *

><p>Two days with no word from Shepard was too long for any of them. Garrus had not eaten once since they had lost communications with her and kept pacing back and forth in the main battery. He had been torn between anger and apprehension up to the very moment she was back on the ship. Then everything hit him at once. Relief washed over him like cold water. This time he had stormed up to her and had taken her up in his arms and hugged her like they had been apart for years. <em>At least the only person who saw that was Dr. Chakwas and she was kind enough to let us have a moment.<em>

Now he was trying to find the best way to approach her with the little "gift" he had gotten her. It had been only slightly difficult to find it and even more so to put it together and box it up, and his large talons where a bit clumsy for such a small item. He held the small box in his hand wondering how to give it to her. Luckily his civs had pockets and it fit nicely inside without a noticeable bulge.

After what seemed like standing in front of her cabin for hours he took a deep breath and entered her quarters. Shepard looked up from her data pad and smiled. But there was something all wrong with her smile and his heart instantly dropped. He closed the distance quickly and took her hands up in his.

"What's wrong?" His voice was full of worry.

"I…" She turned her face away from him and lost her smile. "I have to go back to Earth."

Ordinarily Garrus would think that she would be happy to return to her home world but with the current circumstances he knew otherwise. His own heart started to ache. "Oh."

He could see tears forming in her eyes and he pulled her face into his chest like he had seen many Humans do to those in such situations. She trembled in his arms as light sobs escaped her lips. Never had he seen her like this before and it stabbed at his soul to see her like that. But he just held her as she let herself go until there was no more to let our and her eyes were red and a bit puffy.

She did not need to tell him, he knew what was going to happen. Shepard was going to have to leave him. _At least Earth is safe right now._

"I guess this is goodbye, Garrus." Her voice was course and scratchy.

"Yeah." He kissed her sour lips carefully. "Maybe they will let me visit you."

Shepard smiled awkwardly at him. "I really wish they would." They both knew it would be impossible.

Garrus fumbled with his pocket and pulled out the box. "I wasn't sure how to give this to you, but I don't think I will have any other time to do so." Shepard took it in her hands and held it fragilely like it was made of glass. "I hope you like it. It took some work finding it, but I think it is more appropriate now than ever." Garrus kissed her one last time before standing up.

"Thank you, Garrus. I wish I had something to give you." She smiled at him warmly.

"Don't worry, Lexi. I plan on seeing you again. Just stay safe until then."

"Goodbye Garrus."

"Goodbye Lexi." It took all his strength to walk away from her and back down to the main battery to gather his things. _You already have given me everything I could ever ask for._

* * *

><p>Shepard did not know how long Garrus had been gone before she finally decided to open the tiny box. It felt lighter than stones and most metals. He had never bought her anything before and was a bit stunned that he even decided to do so. She was no expert on Turian culture but she thought that they did not normally give gifts except to family on certain occasions.<p>

She lifted the top of the box to reveal a tiny holo-chip on a chain. She popped open the lid and hit the little pad that was as big as her thumb. It flickered to life and an image fazed above the chip. Tears that she had thought she had gotten ride of swelled up in her eyes again as the tiny image of Garrus gave her the quirkiest Turian grin ever.

* * *

><p>Day 1:<p>

Hey Garrus.

The Alliance isn't letting me send out any messages but I can't bring myself not to write this anyways. Earth is exactly how I remembered it, full of people and as busy as the Citadel Commons. I wish you could see it. Well, be here with me that is. Lock down is going to be very boring and mundane. They have me pushing papers as usual, but at least Anderson was able to talk them into letting me keep some privileges. Of course none of those being letters in or out. Nothing I can do about that though.

I never got to thank you for the holo-locket. It is beautiful. I don't know how you found one or even knew about them. I thought they were just some silly Human item. My grandmother used to have a vintage one of her and my grandfather that actually held old photographs from before we got holo-tech. It is silly but I have already had to buy two new power chips for it. A friend here on Earth told me that I can actually find and mass effect core power unit specifically for holo-lockets here in New York. It is going to take some working, but I think I can convince Anderson to get me one. Don't worry, it is legal to get one. I just can't leave this godforsaken place.

I miss you already,

Lexi.

* * *

><p>Day 26:<p>

Hey again,

Today I meat the perfect sparring partner for you, he is young and a bit block-headed. Like a certain young Turian I met years ago when I was investigating this rouge Specter. James has a good heart though and he is much nicer than some of these politicians I have to deal with. They won't even give me an estimated date on the trial. Nor will they even let me talk to Joker or tell me where the rest of the crew went.

I hope you are safe out there. I'd hate to have to come save you again for running after bands of mercs just to forget about me. You better not have forgotten me! What am I saying, you're too hotheaded to forget about someone like me.

Miss you tons,

Lexi.

* * *

><p>Day 78:<p>

My dear Garrus,

Today has been extra hard on me. Again they have pushed back the trail date to deal with "more pressing matters". How pressing does a Reaper invasion have to be for them to do something about it? Sometimes they just make me so angry! At least Anderson and James visit regularly and James lets me beat him up in sparring time from time. Other than that, I have read the past ten books they let me have about eight times each already. I am about to go stark crazy here!

Also, I finally was able to find your star from here on Earth. It took a lot of sneaking around and finding the right research but I now know where to look up at to see Palaven. I am sure that is where you are. I hope it is safe there. I have a feeling that time is running short, and fast. Oh, and I finally was able to get the Ezo core for the holo-locket. Sometimes I fall asleep with it on next to my bed. It is the best gift anyone has ever given me.

I know you will probably never see these letters but I think I might be in love you. I sure as hell think about you all the damn time. And about all that we have shared together with the time we had. I miss you more than ever. This bed is too cold without you.

Love,

Lexi.

* * *

><p>Garrus jumped awake at the sound of metal against metal. His eyes adjusted to the bright light of late afternoon. <em>Spirits, I slept longer than I anticipated. <em>Sunlight poured into his room and shown against the litter of data pads and dirty clothing. _I guess I should clean up a bit._ A light cough caught his attention and he looked over towards his desk to find his father reading a pad.

He suddenly felt very self cautious about himself. Not all of the pads he left on his desk were about the Reapers or information pertaining towards them. A good many of those specific pads had information on Human culture and about half of those were on courting. "Uh, hey dad."

Garrus's father turned the chair around to look at him better. "Good afternoon, son. I came to see if you were hungry, but I see you were busy last night and must have fallen asleep late."

Embarrassment flushed through him. Garrus had fallen asleep in one of his chairs while reading old Earth literature. Shepard had quite a few files on literature and had even collected a few hardbound copies as well. He had asked her about them once and she had simply said that there was just something about the feel of the pages and the smell that they produced when leafed through. It did not make any sense to him but nonetheless it was something important to her so it was important to him.

It had also become increasingly difficult to sleep since he had to leave the Normandy and head toward Palaven. Reading Earth literature reminded him of Shepard and made it easier some nights. "Yeah, it's just been a little harder to sleep at night. Being on ships all the time kind of messes with your sleep patterns." That much was enough true.

His father flared his mandibles at him curiously and studied his son. "I know you miss her."

Garrus just about tripped over his own feet. "Excuse me?" He was a little frightened at this point. Not once had he ever mentioned his personal activities that involved Shepard with his father. He only told him what he needed to know.

"They way you talk about your Commander reminds me of how I used to talk to my friends about your mother."

His heart stopped and almost refused to start beating again. There was a deathly worry inside him. For one, his father never talked about his mother like that, and the other being he did not really care for Humans and Human Specter at that. Shepard taken as a mate would more than likely be unforgiving. "I… uh…" Garrus was not sure what to say to his father.

"She must really be something if you care about her that much." He followed his father's gaze towards the collection of data pads.

Suddenly Garrus did not care about what his father thought about his relationship with Shepard. "Yeah." He raised his head proudly. "Yeah I do."

He watched as his father's brow eased down from its tense state and his mandibles flared happily. "I am glad you have found someone as noble as her. Maybe one day meeting the woman that softened my son will honor me." His father stood up and left him standing alone in his room.

Garrus's mandibles twitched uncontrollably. It was easier to move both of them now that he had fully healed and the medical plate had been removed. _First he doesn't yell at me for destroying my face and now this? What in the name of the Spirits replaced my dad?_

* * *

><p>Day 107:<p>

Garrus my love,

It rained today for the first time in months. The news reporters were all babbling about how lucky we are that the draught is over. Not that I really see much of that being stuck up in the tower all day long.

One of the clerks brought her daughter with her today and I got to spend some time away from the board for once. They are still going at it slow and drawing it out like it is not important. Everyone knows it's important but they just don't want to admit it.

Anyways, I let the darling little girl braid my hair. I know you don't know what that is but I know you would be interested in knowing that I have let my hair grow out this entire time. You will love it. I have to brush it more often but as long as I have it up it doesn't seem to be much of a bother. Perhaps when we get to see each other again I will braid it for you so you can see.

Love,

Lexi.

* * *

><p>Day 167:<p>

My love,

They have finally decided to go through with the trail in a few weeks! It is about damn time. I don't think I can take much more of this house arrest. At least the food is good and Anderson keeps sneaking me my favorite desert every now and then. You know, sometimes he feels like a father. Of course I would never tell him that, and you better not either! He is always looking out for me and has done all he can. I am very glad that the board at least listens to him.

By the way, I think he saw the holo-locket the other day. He didn't say anything but I had left it on the table while I was working on a report and forgot to turn it off. I thought I saw him smile a little at it before I was able to put it up. I guess that means more than just our friends approve. A bit of a step between Humans and Turians I guess. I can't wait to see you again.

Love you with all my heart,

Lexi.


	9. Chapter 9

****A/N: Yay, finally into the ME3 stuff. Sorry took a bit, work and all. Now if I only can have a job where I write all day instead of selling video games... lol. Anyways. Now that you are forewarned of all things chaffing (not really but hey) enjoy!

Although I like nervous Garrus, he can't always be like that. You know, he might not have a human fetish, but he never said anything about a hair fetish! lol, JK that would be just weird. Not sure when I'm going to have Shepard find his little note he left behind but I have a few ideas. BTW, when Victus's son died was the first time I cried when playing ME3. Supper sad. And everyone notices their affection towards each other no matter what they do. Everyone but Kaidan, whom I think is more than likely in denial.

Now for the elephant in the room: I am going to reserve my full judgment of the ending of ME3 until I have played the extended cut coming this summer. It may also have a drastic impact on what I end up doing for this fic. Enough said.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 9<strong>

Shepard tried not to seem hurried in any way as she made her rounds on the Normandy. The past few days had been excruciating and seeing Palaven burning just like Earth had torn her apart. Thankfully Liara was with her as they flew towards Palaven's moon Menae and had held her hand in reassurance. _"Maybe he managed to get off world before the Reapers landed."_ At the time it had only been a sentiment and Shepard took all she could get. The only thing left now was hope and she did not plan on giving up on anyone from now on.

Those kind words started to seem very bleak up until the moment that Garrus just about pranced up to the war camp and injected himself into their conversation. She had not realized that she had been holding her breath. Her lungs had suddenly filed with air and the lead feeling she had inside her had lifted.

She wanted to hug him when she saw him but the way that the other Turians reacted to his appearance told her that it might not be such a good idea. Instead Garrus extended his hand and they exchanged an awkward handshake. There was a look in his eyes that told her that he had noticed the tension in his vicinity as well and they went about the mission like they were just old friends doing what they do best. Even James had acted a bit odd to the Turian's presence and only after Shepard had explained that they had known each other for years did he calm down. She still sensed uneasiness about the soldier but shrugged it off.

With the new Primarch safe on the Normandy and Garrus in the main battery, everything seemed a bit more normal. Now there was nothing stopping her from walking straight up to him and showing him how much she missed him. _That is if he even still feels the same way too._

Garrus huddled over the side panel to the Normandy's cannons and busied himself with the new schematics. He mumbled to himself about someone messing with his baby as Joker pestered him about the Normandy going haywire.

"I'm telling you, everything is green on my side." _Except for the hash job your alliance did on the weapon algorithms._

"Are you sure you didn't calibrate something wrong?" He understood that Joker was worried about the ship but it was starting to get annoying.

"You do know who you are talking with, right?" Garrus was so caught up in dealing with the agitated pilot and with recalibrating the weapons system he never heard the doors open and shut.

"Garrus, didn't waste any time getting to work I see."

He nearly dropped the tool he had in his hand when he heard Shepard's sweet voice over the hum of the ship. "Yeah, well after what I've been through calibrating a giant gun is a vacation. Besides I am sure we are going to need lots of them."

Shepard smiled at him and nodded. "I can't argue with that."

"So…" Garrus drew himself as close as he dared to her. "Is this were we, uh, shake hands? I wasn't sure what the exact protocols are in this situation or if you even felt the same way about me." _Spirits I sure hope she does._ "The scars are starting to fade, but I can go out and get all new ones if it will help."

Shepard giggled a little and looked at him like she used to with her bright green eyes. "I thought about you a lot, Garrus. It kept me going through some of the harder times." Her gaze seemed a little out of focus as her hand went over the middle of her chest as if she was remembering something important.

"Ah, well I've been doing some more research on Human customs. I didn't want to presume anything but…"

Shepard interrupted him by flinging herself into his arms and kissing him strongly on his mandible. The warmth of her lips enveloped him and it seemed like a lifetime ago since the last time he had felt them. He instinctively wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned into her kiss and sighed. After a few silent moments she pulled her face away from his and looked up to meet his eyes again.

"Sometimes, Garrus, you talk too much." She smiled at him coyly. Her hand gently ran down his neck where the bandage used to be and he shuddered a little as her fingers fell across the ridges of his scars. He had missed her touch more than he thought.

Garrus coughed politely to the side. "It's good to see that my… romantic skills made an impression." He tightened his grip on her to bring her even closer to him and rested his forehead on hers as they gazed at each other for a while. There was no telling how long they stood there embraced together as they let go of any thought of time. The panel next to them started beeping loudly interrupting their tender moment and they pulled apart hesitantly. "I guess we both better get back to work." He did not want her to leave.

"Yeah. Hey," Garrus looked back at her hopefully. "Diner tonight up in my room." Shepard smiled deviously at him as she swayed her body away from him.

Garrus nodded in agreement. "This time, I will bring the good stuff." He reached over behind a crate and pulled out a bottle of wine he had managed to snag before they left Palaven. She gave him a small wink and left him to his work.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you went to your father!" Shepard sat back with her drink in amazement. "Last time I checked, you weren't really on good terms with him."<p>

Garrus nodded as he washed down his food with wine. "Yeah. What I can't believe was that he actually believed me."

Her mouth dropped open in shock. "No way."

"Yup, even took it to the Primarch."

"I like his style." She was starting to piece things together little by little. "So that's how you got your Reaper Task Force."

"A token title, but it got us what we needed to be ready for the invasion."

"Oh, by the way, I noticed generals saluting you. How far down the line of secession are you these days?" She grinned at him and Garrus almost chocked on his drink.

"Yeah… lets not talk about that." He turned his head away from her.

"You know, I always thought you were noble but a prince? Now that is something I'd like to see." Garrus noticed a tiny twinkle in her eye as she crossed her arms at him.

"Only for you, Lexi." He hoped it did not come off as a bad joke.

Shepard giggled anyways and gave him a sheepish look. "I do have to ask though. Did you tell your father? You know, about us?"

Garrus looked off to the side slightly and put down his drink. "Not really. He, ah, sort of found out on his own."

She gave him a confused look. "Um, what?"

He was glad that Turians did not blush. "Yeeah. I told you I have done more research on Human customs. Well… it was kind of hard to hide all the pads I had about and he might have picked one up and saw what was on it."

Shepard blushed a bright pink. "Ah. Got it. So what did he say?"

"I guess you could say that he approves."

She blinked rapidly at him. "He does?" Garrus nodded. "Wow."

"I know."

"Have you heard from him since we left?"

Garrus shook his head. "My sister is still there on Palaven too."

Shepard took his hands in hers and moved closer. "They will be ok, Garrus."

"I hope so." A moment of silence passed over them. "How is your mother?"

She shook her head as well. "I haven't heard anything since I left Earth."

It was Garrus's turn to pull her close. "Lets talk about something else." She nodded in agreement. They both did not want to think about such things. "How was being quarantined?"

Shepard gave him a strange look. "Well, aside from the constant push off from the Alliance Board, pretty uneventful. I…" She stopped in mid sentence and her brow scrunched up awkwardly.

"What is it?" He was generally worried when she made that face.

"I wrote you every day I was there. But now, you will never get to read them." A tiny tear escaped and rolled down her face. She quickly wiped it away in hopes he did not noticed.

"About what?" He was slightly curious. He already knew that they would not allow any communication to or from Shepard so he never tried to write her. Now he felt like he should have at least tried.

Shepard smiled at him. "Anything and everything. I even wanted to tell you that I grew my hair out for you."

Garrus nuzzled his face into her neck. "I noticed. It is beautiful." It seemed like she was making it a point to always have her hair down now when they were alone together.

"So… what is this about this research you were doing?"

Garrus rested his forehead on her again and stared into her eyes and pulled lightly on her clothing. "How about I show you?"

* * *

><p>Shepard lay in a tight ball fast asleep next to him as he held her close. He was very glad that he had researched the things that he did. It made things a lot easier between them. Granted it had been months since they were last together, but compared to those nights they were perhaps just a little clumsy and a tad awkward. Now Garrus knew were to touch her and how to move properly and putting those things into reality was a lot easier than he thought. It had been a lot more stimulating as well. Of course it had been enjoyable before but now he did not have to worry if he would do something wrong or accidentally move in a way that could potentially harm her.<p>

Garrus smoothed the top of her hair out and gave her a light kiss before slowly unwrapping himself from around her so that he would not wake her. He could not sleep at the moment and he had been eyeing the holo-locket he gave her that was laying on her nightstand. Carefully he picked it up between his talons and quietly moved off towards her desk. After a few moments he was able to pop off the back with a few tools he was able to find in the armory and fiddle with the chip. He wanted to leave her a special message for the next time that she used it. _When ever that may be._

* * *

><p>"I am truly sorry about your son." Shepard hung her head as she tried to fight back tears as she told the Primarch about his son's sacrifice. Garrus slid closer to her without actually touching her and gave her a reassuring look as he straightened up into his soldier stance.<p>

"Sacrifice in war is expected. He did us proud, but we're a hard bunch to please."

Primarch Victus raised his brow slightly and looked at both of them. "My son died with the respect of his men. I couldn't have asked for more. Thank you, Commander."

She gave him the best smile she could and nodded. "We will make sure that he is not forgotten."

Wrex was huffing in the background over his terminal and they could hear him vaguely mumbling something about a scalpel. "I need to catch up with Dr. Mordin and make sure the geophone cure is coming along as planed." Shepard excused herself from the two Turians and stopped briefly for a quick word with Wrex.

The Primarch watched Shepard walk out of the room before he turned toward Garrus and gave him a look. "After talking with your Commander a few times I understand how you can find her attractive."

Garrus choked and shock filled his face. "I, uh… How did you know?"

Primarch Victus chuckled at him and crossed his arms. "Even if there wasn't rumors back home, I can see how you two look at each other." He turned back towards the terminal and clicked it back on. "She is as honorable as any Turian that's for sure."

Garrus glanced over toward the door she had left through. "Yeah."

* * *

><p>Mordin was humming again when she entered the med bay and Eve was swaying a little to the beat. Shepard smiled as she listened to the song.<p>

"Thank you Mordin." Eve shifted to a more comfortable position.

"Still prefer patter songs." Both Even and Shepard chuckled at him.

"How are things going, Mordin?" Shepard leaned up against the side of the table and looked over at the samples.

"Good. Got skin samples from Wrex, getting close to cure." Mordin's hands busied over his work.

"Yeah, he said something about that. I hope you are planning to stick around after all this is done. We could use another good doctor again and with the increase of the number of crew I'm sure Dr. Chakwas would enjoy having another set of hands to help with the more alien crew members."

"Until the Reapers are dealt with. After, not sure, might go somewhere sunny. Sit on beach, look at ocean, and collect seashells." Mordin looked off into the distance thoughtfully. Shepard giggled at him.

"You'd go stark mad within an hour."

"Maybe run test on seashells." He grinned at her. "Speaking of which. I see Garrus has been regularly visiting the elevator. Test stage finished? Do you need more antibiotics?"

Shepard felt her face grow hot. "I, uh, think we have it under control. Dr. Chakwas gave me another checkup not long ago and I am perfectly fine. No bad reactions to my implants or other… things. Besides, someone was kind enough to leave the last kit alone."

If Mordin could smile any bigger his face looked like it would snap in half. "Good to hear. Still recommend not to… ingest."

"Y-yes. I know. We are careful." Shepard swallowed the lump in her throat and wished the room did not feel as hot anymore.

Mordin nodded his head at her. "Oh, sent a new kit to your room. Read instructions to use correctly. Think there may be need of it in the future."

"Do you know something I don't, Mordin?" Shepard crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Not unless there are plans of running off or scrutiny." His attention was back on the skin samples in front of him.

"Are you pulling my leg?" Shepard narrowed her eyes at him.

"Shocking, Commander! Would never dream of mockery!" She could hear Eve chuckling behind her shaman mask and grinned at him.

"Of course not. Thanks for everything."

* * *

><p>Garrus left the refugees feeling only slightly better. There was no word yet from his family but plenty of reports from Palaven. <em>At least people are actually able to get off world. From what Shepard told me, it is damn nearly impossible on Earth with Harbinger standing watch. Hell, they barely made it out of there themselves.<em> That in itself was not comforting to say to her though. Even though she was not born there it was still her home and it was burning just as badly as his.

He had told her that he needed her more than ever now. Granted the whole galaxy needed her but he had learned that sometimes it was ok to be a little indulgent and want something for oneself. Garrus let out a deep breath and hit the elevator to the hospital. Shepard told him that she was going to go visit Kaidan since he was actually conscious now. Normally he would have been worried but not after she had told him what really happened between them. He almost felt sorry for the guy but being in a one-sided relationship just made it impossible.

The view changed drastically as the elevator passed through the presidium and he looked longingly towards the high spots where he had always wanted to go when her served in C-Sec but had followed the rules like a good Turian. One day he would. Then an idea popped into his head. _Hmm… now that would be something._

* * *

><p>Shepard tried to smile at Kaidan. His face looked like it had taken one too many rounds with a drunk Krogan and she was sure it felt like it too. "I'm sorry Kaidan."<p>

Kaidan tired to move and it looked like he was about to break something. "It's ok. I got too curious."

"Yeah, I remember there was once a young LT. telling me that a long time ago."

Kaidan tried to laugh and failed short of two huffs. "Never going to let that go are you?" Shepard grinned mischievously at him. "Look, I'm glad you came by. I wanted to talk."

"About?"

"I am really sorry about not coming back the first time. I should have, I just…" Kaidan grasped for words to explain himself.

"It's ok. I forgive you." There was no way she could truly be mad at him in this state.

"Yeah. I know I said some pretty hurtful things to you, and Garrus too. We are all friends and I don't want there to be any bad blood between us."

Shepard nodded at him. "I get that. I will be sure to let Garrus know that too."

Kaidan looked back at her with an odd look. "You found him?"

"Yeah, at least this time we weren't dodging a merc gun and just a Reaper blast. Palaven's is burning too."

"Shit." He looked back off to the side in deep thought.

Shepard finally stood up and patted the side of his arm, the only place she could see that did not look like a piece of bad fruit. "Get better Kaidan. We could really use you out there. I will see you later."

"Yeah. See you Commander. I'm sure as hell not going anywhere." Kaidan seemed a little gloomy again.

"If you need anything just let me know."

The hallway of the hospital was littered with patients waiting to be admitted and a few lying in cots being treated on the spot. It was good to see Kaidan but she was more than ready to be away from such a place. The place smelled too much like death. Shepard walked as fast as she could without seeming rude. By the time she reached the elevator the doors opened and she saw Garrus looking down at her.

"Hey, you didn't have to come get me. I'm well able to ride this bad boy by myself you know." She teased him slightly and squeezed in next to him as he hit the button for the docking bay.

"Yeah, I know." Something in his voice told her he was planning something.

"Being mischievous are we?"

"Hmm… Maybe." They laughed together on the ride back to the Normandy.


	10. Chapter 10

****A/N: Getting a little more detailed her. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Chapter 10<strong>

Liara fidgeted as Shepard told her about the letter from Alliance Command. There was another Prothean artifact on Eden Prime. She could see Liara's eyes twitch as they tried to make complete sense of things and keep the chatter from the Shadow Broker's terminal to a minimum. Glyph swirled around them as it attempted to keep the influx of information from overwhelming their systems as all thoughts of anything else eluded the excited Asari.

"Shepard. You _have_ to take me." Her voice almost shook as it took on a pleading tone. Shepard held back a giggle and sighed.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." She placed a hand on her friend's arm and led her to sit down to keep her from running out the airlock before they even reached their destination. "You are the best Prothean expert I know. But first, let's talk." Shepard waved off any retort as Liara tried to open her mouth. "Joker is already setting course. It will take us a while to get there. Besides, we haven't talked since Illium really."

Liara nodded in agreement. "Yes. I'm sorry. I should have joined you back then. But one thing led to another and then all the sudden I was taking over where the last Shadow Broker left off." Her voice trailed off and was lined with a hint of sadness.

Shepard placed a comforting hand on her arm. "I get it, Liara, you don't have to explain anything to me." She smiled encouragingly at Liara in hopes that it would break her funk. "I understand. What you were doing was as important as what I was doing. And with all the extra intel, it has really paid off."

Finally Liara smiled a little. "I guess it has."

"Ok, now tell me. How have you been?" Liara was the next closest person who felt like family to her since Ashley had died. Being personal with her was like talking to a sister.

"I've been better." Liara let out a long sigh and Shepard saw the worry lines form across her forehead. "It has been too long since I have heard from some of my informants and with the current situation, I'm not sure if I want to from some of them."

"Feron?" Shepard had to ask. The way the two looked at each other the last time she saw them she knew that eventually something would amount to it.

Liara looked away painfully. "Not since Mars."

"Last transcript with Feron he did not mention any injuries." Glyph chimed in unexpectedly making the two of them jump slightly.

"Thank you, Glyph."

"I am sure you will hear from him soon."

"Goddess I hope so." Liara praised lightly. "I am also sorry about being jealous of you and Garrus."

Shepard giggled slightly. "You? Jealous?"

Liara's face turned a bit purple. "Yeah. I told Garrus months ago that I was sorry about what I said to you two, but I never had the courage to say it to you."

"Liara," Shepard got up and hugged her friend. "I can never be upset with you. Since Ash died you are the closets person I have to family here. You two are like my sisters. I just wish she was here with us."

Liara hugged her back. "Me too, Lexi." A small tear escaped Liara's eyes and she pulled away and wiped her face.

"Well, suit up! I don't plan on leaving you but I sure as hell am not going to wait for you!" They both laughed and went their ways to ready themselves for the next mission.

* * *

><p>Tuchanka held a strange beauty after seen the old ruins lavished with greenery and water. Garrus would have never guessed that such a dead planet had a little life left on it. <em>"There is always hope."<em> Shepard had told him as they had walked through them in awe. He truly wanted to believe those words in their time of need. She did have a knack for showing up just at the right time and know just what to do. _"In my cycle, whole worlds burned and hope was just a fragmentation of the mind."_ And then there was Javik and his charming self.

Garrus shivered in his armor. The thawed out Protean gave him the creeps, as a Human would put it. "There is one of the Hammers." Garrus pointed to the left of them as the Reaper's eye scanned the landscape for them.

"Split up. Javik you take the one on the right."

Javik nodded at her logic. "Sound idea."

"Wait, no it's not." Garrus knew what she was up to and he did not like it.

"I can distract the Reaper long enough for you two to activated the Hammers and call the Thresher Maul." Her face was slightly twisted as she gave him the order.

At the moment he wanted to break it. He knew what had happened to her on Akuze. Shepard had always had problems with Thresher Mauls. The one they had faced for Grunt's Rite nearly sent her into a craze and she would rather face down a Reaper than the mother of all Thresher Mauls.

"It's too dangerous, Shepard." No matter how much she liked him calling her by her first name he was not going to do so while in the line of duty. "One look at you and it will tear you apart."

Javik was already in position on the other side waiting for the opportunity to lunge towards the Hammer and was not in whispering distance. "I will be fine." Shepard smiled at him and pulled on his armor and gave him a quick kiss on his mouth before standing up behind their cover and pulled out her weapon. "I may not be able to fight like a Krogan, but I sure can move like a leopard."

Garrus heard the Reaper power up at the sight of her and the questioning thought of what a leopard could be she was running in the opposite direction from him. "Go!"

Without looking back at her, Garrus turned and took off towards the Hammer. He could not bear to even glimpse towards her. The thick air of Tuchanka filled his already closed lungs and grated at his breath. _Spirits please guide her._ The Hammer came into view as he hoped that whatever a leopard was it was quick and nimble enough to dodge a Reaper attack. A deadening roar from the Reaper blast filled his ears as he reached out and activated the Hammer.

_THUD._

All went silent and Garrus swore he could hear the earth beneath them pealing apart.

_THUD._

Garrus turned and looked across the way to see Javik on the other side stumbling to keep his balance right before the ground moved away from his feet and his face meet the cracked walkway. The Reaper seemed to have been just as distracted by the sudden change in the area and had ceased it's attack. His heart pounded loudly as he let his visor franticly search the area for any signs of Shepard.

_THHUUDD._

This time the sound was so loud it filled his head and the odd crackling noise was the only thing in the air. Garrus did not pay any attention to those things. Only keeping steady and finding Shepard was on his mind. Finally he spotted her still standing solid as a rock staring off in the distance. At first he thought that she was just trying to keep on her feet when he realized she was looking at something. He turned his vision in the direction of her gaze and let his visor focus in on something in the distance.

_Shit._ The dust cloud was bigger than he had ever seen. "Shepard!"

Garrus tried to yell at her and scramble to his feet at the same time. Halfway to her the air shook in the loudest shriek he had ever heard. It was like the air itself moved sideways as the largest Thresher Maul he had ever seen burst through the ground and reared up towards the sky. _No, no, no, no, no._ His face greeted the ground again and he saw the platform Shepard was standing on crack.

"LEXI!"

Garrus yelled her name as loud as he could and reached out towards her as the rock broke and one side fell towards the ground. Something inside of him must have snapped and he could not remember how he had gotten to his feet or how he had started to slide down the broken walkway. Shepard was picking herself up off the dusty ground below him looking franticly towards the Shroud. _Dear Spirits she is ok!_

He nearly ran her over as he let his speed take him straight to her and scooped her up in his arms and kissed her. "I told you never to do anything like that again." Garrus snarled quietly underneath his breath.

"Garrus." She pulled away from him gently. "I have to get to the Shroud. Now."

There was still a slight panic in her eyes but he could tell she was going to be all right. He nodded knowingly and let go.

"Go get Wrex."

She started to take off towards the Shroud but Garrus grabbed her arm with his gauntleted hands.

"No."

Shepard turned around sharply and he could see the fright was finally gone. The raging Thresher Maul and Reaper behind them completely forgotten; sounds of flesh and metal tearing were only a fraction of the things he could hear at that very moment.

"We have to be able to get out of here." Her eyes looked away for half a second as he heart Javik slide down the broken walkway towards them. "Get Wrex and come get me and Mordin." She pulled him in closely and moved her head next to his face and whispered softly. "I will always come back to you."

Shepard placed a hard yet quick kiss on his mandible and was halfway towards the Shroud in a blink of an eye. "You better." He growled after her.

* * *

><p>"No Mordin. You can't!" Shepard tried to reason with the Salarian doctor as he walked towards the Shroud elevator.<p>

"It is the only way."

"Can't someone else…"

"There is no one else." The stark black eyes bore into her vision and she fought back tears. "Besides, someone else may get it wrong."

"We will miss you." Shepard wanted to turn away. She did not want to watch another friend walk straight into their own death because of her.

Mordin nodded at her. "Same. Would have liked to run test of seashells."

A sudden memory of being on a beach with her grandmother watching the tide wash up perfectly white shells flooded her mind and she vowed that one day she would bring some for him to rest with.

"Goodbye, Mordin." They stared at each other as the tower cracked around them.

"Goodbye, Shepard. It was an honor to serve with you."

"And you."

Shepard turned away from her friend and started to sprint towards the exit. She thought she could vaguely hear him singing to himself right before the doors slid shut. Closing her eyes tightly she took off at full speed hoping that the others would be waiting for her not far way.

"Shepard!"

Wrex's voice broke her concentration to put one foot in front of the other and nearly fell over. The Krogan land vehicle screeched to a stop and the doors opened long enough for her to leap inside and nearly push Garrus onto the ground. He caught her and held her steady until the doors closed and she found her own balance.

"Where is Mordin?" Garrus's mandibles twitched awkwardly.

"He…" She did not know how to tell them.

"He knew he had to go up there." Eve spoke up in the midst of silence as the vehicle lurched over rocks and cracked ground.

"You knew?" Shepard was beyond hurt.

"Yes. And he knew that if he told you, you would try and stop him before he could go and the cure would not succeed."

Shepard hung her head. She understood why but a part of her did not want to believe it. A loud cracking noise rumbled the vehicle and Shepard banged on the hull.

"Stop, pull over!"

Wrex opened up the doors just in time for everyone to see the Shroud emanate a large white cloud throughout the sky. It billowed over and shimmered down gracefully and Shepard reached out and let a flake fall into the palm of her armored hand.

"It looks like snow."

A small tear escaped her eyes as they stood watching the Shroud crumble apart. Even at the distance they were from the Shroud the sound of the breaking tower rolled over them and the Krogan all poked out there heads and looked up at the sky. Wrex was cheering and grabbing at Eve to follow him towards the edge to have a closer look at the cure falling out of the sky.

Garrus scooted closer to her and gave her a look of sadness over his visor. She could not help but tear up for their lost friend. "Spirits be with him." She heard him whisper to himself. Something popped into her head and overwhelmed everything else.

"Only in the arms of Death will you begin to heal."

Garrus turned back to her with a confused look on his face. "What?"

"My father used to tell me that before…" She rarely spoke about her father and at the moment she really did not want to. Thankfully Garrus understood and risked a attentive hand on her shoulder.

"Well, there is sure a lot of healing going on here." He looked around at the broken earth of Tuchanka filled with Krogan who longed for a cure to once again be a proud race. Garrus was right; her father was right. It was Tuchanka's time to heal.

* * *

><p>The Citadel was always buzzing with people and noise. Shepard needed the mindless distractions and she felt like seeing if she could be of any help on the presidium. After a few hours she strolled down towards a few of the markets to see if there was anything worth purchasing. Her engineers had been bugging her to find a new schismatic to help with the Ezo drive and she was sure they could use a new deck of cards for the rec-room.<p>

"EDI!" The AI was wondering around the shops in her new remote-body. "Gathering data?"

EDI turned respectfully towards her. "Yes. You could say that."

"Hmm… Wonders of the universe kind of stuff?" Shepard always enjoyed teasing the AI from time to time. Now that EDI was unshackled and was spending a lot of time studding Human behaviors she was starting to act more Human-like.

"I was running scenarios to analyze Jeff's behavior." Shepard raised an eyebrow at EDI as she glanced over at Joker seated on the bench near by. He seemed in a half daze thinking to himself. "I believe he has a strong attraction to me but has not stated it to anyone yet."

Shepard giggled. "To put it mildly."

"Shepard, you have first hand sexual experience. How do you know when someone is interested?"

"Um…" Shepard blinked at the AI. It was an awkward question even for and AI. "I, uh… Well, for one they may pay extra attention to you. But you gifts, read poetry, play music, things like that." Her hand rose up to touch the holo-locket that hung with her dog-tags under her clothing.

"I lack material wants aside from hardware and software upgrades and my program does not assign value to music. Perhaps we should discuses how to provoke Jeff into an emotional commitment."

Shepard tried not to laugh. "I don't think that would be difficult, but that's just not how you go about things like that. Relationships require a certain… attentive quality that is different from anything else. How about trying doing something together that you two enjoy and see where it goes from there. Do something simple, like you both like humor."

"Correct." EDI went slightly ridged as her processors used up a good amount of memory. "Do you think he would like 'The Man Who Hung Himself'?"

This time Shepard did giggle. "It only matters as long as you both have fun. If you are, then he probably will too."

EDI blinked her mechanical eyelids to simulate natural Human behavior. "So that outcome is of an unknown quantity but you suggest I try anyways?"

"No one ever fell in love without being a little brave." Shepard smiled at the AI.

"I see. I believe you have improved my chances, Shepard. Thank you."

"Anytime, EDI."

"I had a discussion with Jeff about love once."

Shepard turned back towards her curiously. "Oh?"

"Are you and Officer Vakarian in love?"

The question stopped her dead on the spot. She knew that more people where finding out about their relationship and that it had been hard to keep it from the crew, especially those crewmembers who could be in places that should be private.

"I, uh… I am not sure if we are 'in love', but I am pretty sure that I love him." It was the only thing she could really think of. She had not discussed such things with Garrus. _Not like we really had the time to._

"'Pretty sure' Shepard?" EDI seemed a little confused by her answer.

"Love is… difficult. It can mean many things to different people, but to tell someone that you love them is special. You just don't tell anyone that you love them and there are normally certain commitments that follow afterwards. It can be hard to tell if both people agree on where they stand in a relationship. So to answer your question, I don't know, I've never asked him."

She tried to smile and not think too hard about the answer she was giving EDI. She wanted to say yes, but she honestly did not know. EDI looked at her with her robotic stillness.

"Like you said, Shepard: No one ever fell in love without being a little brave."

Shepard laughed. "Yeah. I guess I need to take my own advice sometimes."

EDI left to attend to Joker and Shepard walked past the shops and pulled out her locket. She slid off into the corner where nobody was paying any attention to and clicked it open. The image of Garrus was as clear as the first day she saw it. The goofy look on his Turian face shining up looking at her. The tiny mandibles flickered as though they were forming words… _It has never done that before_.

After a minute the image repeated the same motions but she could not hear anything. The noises coming off the streets were drowning out any sound. Shepard waited another minute and put the locket up to her ear in hopes of hearing the message. It was faint but she could make out the words the miniature Garrus spoke to her. She smiled and felt something wet hit her hand. Her omni-tool buzzed with a message and she put away the holo-locket before she clicked on her messages.

"_When you have time, meet me on the Citadel. I will be near the c-sec docking bay. –Garrus"_


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Yay! Date with Garrus, and the things that follow... ;D Enjoy!

Also, I am going to be taking a little break from my fics to work on some personal works. I promise to be back soon and with some really good updates and changes! Thanks for reading my fics! :)

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><p><strong>Chapter 11<strong>

Garrus leaned up against the rail next to the C-Sec dock trying to not look nervous or too out of place. He pulled on his civics again to keep his hands from fidgeting. It had been half an hour and there was no sign of Shepard or a message to confirm whether she was going to meet him or not. There was no way she could not have received the message; she would always have messages forwarded to her omni-tool if she was not on the Normandy and EDI always informed her when she was. _Maybe she went to get into something more suitable._ Problem with that was there was no way she could know what he had planed.

The methodical hum from the Citadel softly buzzed around the open docking area and a few passengers passed by on their way to and from docked ships. Finally after what seemed like hours of waiting he saw the familiar dark hair bobbing off in the distance through the barriers. He watched as she came into view, noting the casual pants and light shirt. She must have gone back to the Normandy to clean up first because her hair was straight and out its normal tight ponytail. Once she was closer he pushed off from the railing and waved her over.

"Lexi, glad you could make it." _Of course she was going to make it you silly lizard._

Shepard smiled and quickened her pace towards him. "What's up, Garrus? Your message was kind of vague."

Garrus still did not understand some Human sayings, they just seemed like odd placed questions. The first time a Human had asked him "what's up" he checked his translator to make sure it was not malfunctioning. Now he just passed them off as quirky antics that one just picked up after a fashion.

"I wanted to take you somewhere that didn't involve fighting Reapers." Cautiously he took her hand in his and led her towards the dock.

"Oh? I don't think they have concurred the bar yet, but I am not really in the mood for dancing."

Garrus chuckled at her and hit the unlock button on one of the skycars. "I don't think anyone is in the mood for you dancing, Lexi. Besides, I had something a little more memorable in mind."

He led her to the passenger seat of the skycar and started up the vehicle without another word. Shepard gave him a curious look and got comfortable in her seat.

"So, where are we going then?"

He could tell that she was anxious by the way she kept shifting her feet. "Somewhere we aren't suppose to."

Shepard grinned at him. "Being a bit naughty are we?"

He coughed and ignored her question. "Have you ever had one thing you've wanted to do at least once before you died?"

"Hmm, well I have woken up with a Turian next to me."

"Tsh, trying to make me blush?" His heart was already starting to beat faster.

Shepard giggled at him and turned in her seat to look at him. "So, what is your one thing?"

"The whole time I worked at C-Sec I would look up at the top of the presidium and say 'I want to go up there' but I never did."

"How come?"

"There were 137 regulations saying I couldn't."

"So you got them changed?"

"No," Garrus huffed a little and started to land the skycar. "Now I just don't give a damn."

The doors popped open and he stepped out quickly and gave her a hand. His civics where much thinner than his armor and he could feel the slight warmth from her hand as she wrapped her fingers around his. He felt his mandibles twitch with excitement.

"Besides, I figured it was a good time to do something a little reckless for the hell of it."

She smiled and let him pull her out of the car and leaned against him as she gazed out over the catwalk. He heard her gasp at the sight spread out before them. The skycars whizzed by high above them and the lush greenery and water landscapes below them seemed to look up on them in anticipation. They could not help but stand there in awe.

"It's amazing, Garrus!"

He purred a little and pulled her close. "Well, I would be lying if I didn't tell you that I was hoping it would inspire a certain… mood."

Shepard turned to face him and looked up at him with her sparkling green eyes. His visor swirled to lock in on her and he tried to ignore the readings he kept getting from it. Garrus could not recall a time he was more nervous with her aside from the first night they spent together.

"I… Will you…" The words seemed to have fallen out of his head and eluded his mouth all together. Shepard just stood there smiling at him giving him time to put things together. "What I want to ask is… Well, I… I love you, Lexa."

He leaned forward and rested his forehead on hers. For a long moment she did not say anything. She just pulled her arms around him tighter and he started become slightly frightened at his confession. There was no way of really telling if she felt the same way about him.

"Garrus," He swallowed the lump in his throat and his heart felt like it was going to burst through his chest. "I love you too."

Joy erupted through him and he felt his body shake a little at her quiet words. "Good. I, uh, wasn't sure how to tell you, or if you felt the same way."

She smiled at him and placed one of her hands on the side of his face. The pulse from her body flowed through her touch and ignited a fire inside his blood. "I am right where I want to be for the rest of my life."

"Wow…" Garrus nearly choked. "I, uh, don't know exactly what to do. The Vids Joker lent me didn't go this far. There was the part about sleeping together, but other than that."

Shepard pulled herself up into him, meshing her body against his. "Who needs a Vid when you got me?" Her velveteen voice teased at him playfully.

Garrus squeezed her as tight as he could and pressed his mouth to hers as passionately as he could. With more practice he knew he could probably be able simulate most things a Human male could do with a pair of lips. After a few good kisses he broke away from her mouth panting for breath. He played with her hair between his three fingers and nuzzled her neck.

"This has got to be my favorite place on the Citadel." Garrus confessed softly into her hair.

Shepard sighed in his arms. "Mine too."

* * *

><p>Joker glanced back over at EDI sitting in the co-pilot seat. "You want to go see what?"<p>

"'The Man Who Hung Himself.'" EDI was multitasking again while she answered him.

"I get that, but you want me to go with you?" He was not sure what he was hearing. _Is EDI asking me out on a date?_

"Of course, Jeff. Who else would I take?"

"Err… Well, good point." Nobody else really cared for that type of humor on the Normandy. "If you want to see it then I will take you."

"Thank you, Jeff."

Even though Joker was beyond the point of excitement he was not sure what to exactly do with the sudden interest that EDI had in him. Granted she had always presented an air of interest towards him, but this type of interest was something different all together. He got it that she had a amazing new body and probably wanted to go out and do things she had never been able to do before, but there were much better options than him. EDI continued to multitask and he sat there looking at her out of the corner of his eye when the sound of the docking doors suddenly hissed open making him heart jump and he tried to look busy for a moment.

Joker heard a familiar voice giggling slightly followed by a duel-tone chuckle. Shepard and Garrus must have gone off together somewhere he was not aware of and he curiously turned in his seat gave looked down the hall at the two. They were linked together much in the same manor Joker had to hold onto EDI when he was walking about, but there was something a bit more sensual in the way they were doing it. From his position he could somewhat see their faces and the brief glance told him all he needed to know. Joker turned back towards the controls and turned off the feed to the elevator and Commander's hallway. Silently he wished that EDI's mechanical face was capable of looking at him the way that Shepard was looking at Garrus.

Silence had droned on before Joker realized that EDI had stopped all physical tasks and was look at him. Joker looked over and nearly fell out of his seat from the eerie stillness the robotic body presented next to him.

"Shit EDI, don't do that. It's creepy."

"I talked to Shepard today."

"Yeah I know. I was there." He had been daydreaming on the bench nearby but there was no way he did not notice the two talking.

"I asked her about love."

Joker choked. "You did what?" He remembered the awkward conversation he once had with EDI and Legion about the same subject and felt bad for his commander.

"More specifically I asked her if they were in love." There was no question who "they" was.

"What did she say?" Joker had to admit he was curious himself.

"Only that nobody ever fell in love without being a little brave."

EDI returned to her multitasking, letting Joker fester on their conversation. It did not really tell him anything useful. He did have to admit that Shepard was probably right. Being brave meant taking it a step at a time. He just hoped that he would have time to get through all those steps.

* * *

><p>Garrus ignored the looks the rest of the crew was giving them as he followed Shepard to the elevator. <em>You'd think they had never seen two people in love.<em> Maybe not two people like them, but he frankly did not care. He pulled her inside and hit the button for her cabin. The floor shifted beneath their feet and Garrus wrapped his arms around her and purred at her. She sighed and resumed kissing him.

The wetness of her mouth always amazed him. He felt her tongue slip between them and lick the edges of his mouth threatening to tear them apart. Garrus groaned as the slick wet muscle flicked across his sharp teeth and teased at his rough tongue. He was always afraid she would hurt herself doing things like that but the fact that Humans did that sort of thing all the time kept him thinking that she knew what she was doing and would stop if she did hurt herself. He pressed her up against the wall as she moved her body against his with desire.

They did not stop their movements as the door to her cabin opened. Garrus just pulled her along, yanking at her clothing. He had gotten much more practiced with removing her clothing without tearing it but at this point he really did not care. She had just confessed her love for him and accepted his. He wanted to cleave into her like never before. Shepard found a particular spot on his neck and moaned as she nibbled gently at his leathery skin. One hand scraped nails across his fringe while the other pulled on his clothing in hopes of removing it.

By the time they reached the bed they had left a trail of discarded clothing across the room. He licked her neck and let his taloned hands roam her body. He enjoyed the way the smooth skin felt beneath them and they way he could feel every movement her body made towards him. Shepard let her weight push him onto the bed on his back and he let her straddle him while she explored his body with his mouth. He moaned as her wet little mouth ran over his leathery, plated body. Traveling down towards his… Garrus stopped and tried to pull her back up towards his check.

"W-wait, Shepard. You can't."

He looked down at her hold her firmly in place to keep her from moving any further down. Her dark hair framed her face and flowed down to rest on top of his body. Green eyes filled with desire looked back at him tell him she knew exactly what she was doing.

"I have been taking antibiotics regularly. I promise I will be careful."

Not once had Garrus ever not believed her word. He knew she would keep it or he would make sure to pull her away before anything happened. It would ruin the moment if she ended up on the floor in shock from him. He slowly let go of her and nodded. Carefully she went back to moving slowly down to his erect member. He watched as she took him in her soft mouth, encasing it with warmth and wetness. Garrus gasped as her tongue flicked around his ridges and her mouth started to move up and down on him. A long moan filled his throat and he leaned back his head and let the feeling of ecstasy wave over his entire body. It felt like nothing he had felt before.

"Spirits, Shepard!"

He dug his talons into the sides of the bed and held as if he was holding on for his life. He could not breathe and his skin was on fire with need.

"Shepard… I…"

There was no way he was going to be able to warn her. He had lost himself in her flesh. Then as soon as she started, she stopped. Garrus growled angrily. For a moment he did not want her to stop. Then he realized she had promised him she would be careful and she was good to her word. He flung himself up, grabbed her and threw her onto the bed beneath him. With one hand he held himself up and the other he slid under her body, lifting her to him. He buried his face into her neck and licked her collarbone as he drove himself into her fiercely.

Shepard gasped loudly and arched herself into him. She moaned and shivered at his passion to fill her with his flesh, letting him move her the way he wanted her to. Garrus was blind to all else, the Reapers could blast the ship apart at that very moment and he would still continue to make love to his mate. Nothing was going to come between them now. He would move worlds for her if it meant being with her.

"Garrus!" Her voice was horse but loud. "I… I…"

Shepard cried out and her body flexed against his and she clawed her hands into the sheets. Garrus joined her cry with a loud moan of his own as he let go of all his senses and dug in, letting the sweet feel of release flow through his veins. Vaguely he thought he heard a tearing noise as his vision went white and he collapsed into a useless heap on the bed. He gasped for air and laid there next to his mate as the happiest Turian alive. Minutes passed by and he still had trouble breathing. Garrus turned to look at her.

"L-Lexi, I…"

It was very hard to talk. It was like someone had punched him in the gut. He looked over at her but only to see her jump off the bed and run off completely out of his sight. Garrus tried to say something, to bring her back but his mind was too foggy like after too many drinks. He smacked his mouth and it felt extra wet. Garrus blinked. He licked his teeth and was met with the same odd wetness that tasted strangely like rust. Garrus was still trying to figure it all out when Shepard was suddenly hovered over him with something long and metal like in her hand.

"Le…"

"Shh." She hushed him with her hand. "Stay very still."

Shepard did not give him a chance to say or do anything for the next moment she had the metal thing on his neck and was pressing it into him. It stung and was cold as ice. Garrus gasped and fell back into the bed in shock.

"S-spirits, Lexi. What the hell was that for?"

He had finally found his voice again and the world started to come into focus again. Shepard placed the metal device on the table next to the bed and took a wet towel to his face.

"You needed an antibody shot."

"A what?" He pulled her hand away from his face and saw that it had bright red stains on it. "Lexi? What is…" Then he saw it, the red dripping liquid on her shoulder. "Spirits! I…"

Shepard hushed him again. "I'm fine. I took one too. I have been getting used to your DNA already so the reactions aren't as bad, but you on the other hand…"

It made sense. He had accidentally bit her in the heat of passion and ended up swallowing some of her blood. That was why he was having a hard time getting his body to respond. Thankfully, Shepard was always prepared and had a kit for just the situation. How she had gotten it was beyond him, he was just glad she had it.

"I'm sorry."

She smiled at him and gave him a kiss on the forehead as she continued to clean the blood from his mouth. "It's ok. I've head worse. Besides," She pointed at the bite. "Totally worth it for the best sex ever."

Garrus recalled how she cried his name and the way her body flexed against his. "Well," He licked his teeth as the taste of iron started to fade. "I guess that means you are mine forever."

She giggled at him and folded up the dirty cloth. "All you ever had to do was ask."

He pushed himself up to a sitting position and took up her hands in his. Garrus was a little upset with himself that he had not gotten to the part in his research about Human mating rituals. He only knew a few things from watching Humans interact with each other. There was normally a gift exchange of sorts and a mutual agreement of sanctity to each other. Turians just skipped the gifts and went straight to the agreement stage. Although, he was not quite sure how much Shepard actually knew about Turian matting.

"I…" He scratched at his scar. "Turians just ask one if they will be their mate, and we mate for life."

Shepard raised an eyebrow at him. "No beating around the bush is there."

"No," He shook his head. "So… Will you be my mate, Lexa?"

"Of course I will." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him slightly. "Although, I'm not sure what is going to happen in this crazy war, but I do know that if we get out of this alive you better hold to your word."

Garrus chuckled and kissed her back. "I may be a bad Turian, but I'm a Turian that always keeps his word." He held her at a distance and expected the wound. It was not too deep but it was still bleeding. "You need to see Dr. Chakwas."

Shepard looked off to the side uncomfortably. "I will be fine. I can clean it up and put some medigel on it."

"Lexi, it's still bleeding." He gave her a strict look. "Just call her up."

She shook her head. "Can't."

"Why not?"

She pointed at the bed. He expected maybe some blood on the sheet but when he looked down he saw the bedspread was torn into strips. Garrus was almost embarrassed by what he had done. There was no way Shepard could do that with her hands. He was starting to wonder if he had been a little too rough with her. Franticly he inspected her body for any other damage. Thankfully the bit was the worse of it; there were a few minor scratches but nothing that was going to be a problem.

"You need to see the doctor." Shepard bit her lip at him. "I can carry you down there just the way you are if you like."

"Okay!" He flared his mandibles mischievously at the treat of taking her down to the crew quarters naked. "Just help me replace the bed sheets and I will call her up."

Garrus nodded at her. He really did not want to go down there either but he knew they both needed to be checked just in case. They pulled off the bed and readied themselves for a visit from the doctor and for the lecture that would more than likely follow.


End file.
